The Binghamton women’s lacrosse team fell behind early against Marist on Wednesday at the Bearcats Sports Complex and, despite a brief second-half surge, fell 11-6.
The Bearcats (0-4) came out slow offensively with senior attack Kimberly McGeever and senior midfielder Kristen Stone scoring the team’s only two first-half goals.
After a scoreless opening 10 minutes, the Red Fox offense jolted to life, scoring three straight goals in less than three minutes. Goals from McGeever and Stone cut BU’s deficit to one, but Marist (1-4) answered with another three-goal run to head into halftime up 6-2.
Binghamton’s minimal production was in part due to Marist’s ability to keep the ball on its end of the field.
“[Marist] did hold and possess the ball a lot, but unfortunately there really is no [tactic] to stop the stall in the girls’ game with no shot clock rule,” Binghamton head coach Stephanie Allen said.
The Bearcats’ start to the second half featured three goals in the first 11 minutes, but a Marist goal kept the gap at two.
BU senior midfielder Katherine Hunsberger scored on a free position opportunity just three minutes in to notch the first goal of the half. McGeever and Stone would each add their second goals of the game to contribute to the early run.
The Red Foxes squelched the comeback attempt, though, as they scored the next four goals to take an 11-5 lead.
Allen attributed Binghamton’s defensive woes in part to injuries that have affected the team’s depth, playing a factor late in the game especially.
Stone would provide a late goal to record a hat trick on the day and bring the score to 11-6. The goal was a little too late, though, as time would expire with Binghamton standing as losers by five.
Allen said she felt the Bearcats had their chances on offense, but could not convert.
“I thought we could’ve possessed the ball better, but either way we still need to take more advantage of the opportunities we have,” Allen said.
The Bearcats recorded 17 shots to Marist’s 21 and tallied nine draw controls to Marist’s 10.
Binghamton also had 12 turnovers and converted just 3-of-7 free position opportunities.
BU freshman goalie Erin McNulty played well in her third-straight start as she collected six saves and three groundballs.
The Bearcats are now in their biggest break of the season with their next game set for March 16 at UConn. Binghamton is 0-3 all-time against the Huskies.
“We have a lot to work on and the break will be a good time for us to recuperate and work on some individual fundamental stuff,” Allen said.
Game time is scheduled for 1 p.m. at Connecticut’s George J. Sherman Family Sports Complex.