Cardinals Fly Away With Women's Lacrosse Title

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Catholic University of America women's lacrosse team (15-4) made school history Saturday winning CUA's first Landmark Conference team championship. The top-seeded Cardinals defeated second-seeded Goucher College 21-10 (6-10) to take the conference championship. With the win CUA also extended its win streak to an even 10 games, the Cards haven't lost since late March.

The game was CUA's from the beginning as the Cards jumped out to a 2-0 lead with scores from Landmark Player of the Year Kate Robinson (Emmitsburg, Md./Catoctin) and Laura Haring (Mt. Sinai, N.Y./Mt. Sinai). After a Goucher goal, the Cardinals rattled off a string five more including a pair from Marcy Cuneo (Haddonfield, N.J./Camden Catholic). The Gophers staged a small comeback when Emily Blatter and Marlo Tersigni each put one past the keeper but the Cardinal offense was too much with scores from Caroline Taltavull (Gaithersburg, Md./Gaithersburg) and Katie Buonpastore (Lansdale, Pa./Lansdale Catholic) making the score 9-3. Back-to-back Gopher goals brought the lead to four but CUA finished strong with three before the half as Robinson, Buonpastore and Katie Bitonti (North Potomac, Md./Our Lady of Good Counsel) all contributed to make it 13-5.

Haring continued her solid performance to start the second as she hit two shots in the first two minutes to start the running clock due to a ten-goal lead. Goucher once again managed a response but the CUA offense pushed it down the field and in the goal with Meg Sabo (Bell Canyon, Calif./Louisville), Lauren Sheils (Hanover, Md./Archbishop Spalding) and Robinson all getting into the act. The game seemed in the bag for CUA but the Gophers had some fight left as they staged an exciting three-minute rally where they scored three goals and seemed to be gaining momentum. However, the Cardinal defense quickly locked down and stopped the scoring while Robinson and Bitonti combined for three goals. A Gopher score right before the horn made the final 21-10 and gave CUA its championship.

The Cardinals out shot the Gophers 38-22 and had two more ground balls as well as one more draw control. Robinson led the squad with five goals while Haring added four and an assist. Showing their depth, nine difference Cardinals scored for CUA in the game. In goal, Melissa Brashear (Pittsburgh, Pa./Oakland Catholic) took the win with nine saves.

The Cardinals are now 15-4 and ranked 18th in the nation. Without an automatic bid, the Cards will wait for Sunday's NCAA Selection Show to see if they receive a bid to the tournament. The show will be broadcast on CSTV at 7:30 p.m., ET.