Bants Secure NESCAC Tournament Spot with Win over Wesleyan

Wednesday night was a big conference meeting between our Trinity Bants and our cross-town rival Wesleyan Cardinals. It was a beautiful night for lacrosse and our team did not disappoint. We used a strong 5-0 run in the first half to secure the win, with an 11-6 score, and a spot in the NESCAC tournament.

The win did not come easy, as we knew it wouldn't. Wesleyan was fiesty off the draw and peppered our defense early with some quick shots. Mish was up to the challenge, making some incredible saves, keeping Wesleyan off the scoreboard for nearly the first 20 minutes of play. Our attack held up their end of the bargain scoring the first 5 goals of the game, cashing in on some nice goals in transition, with CJ and Caite each tallying 2 apiece and Rachel setting up 2 of those scores.

Wesleyan would not be shut out and produced some offense late in the half. After breaking into the scoring column with 11 minutes to go - they the scored another goal with 7 minutes remaining and then rattled off two quick goals within 15 seconds of each other to close the gap to three goals, at 7-4. Both sides would trade goals before the half was over, making the halftime score 8-5. This would prove to be the closest the Cardinals would get.

While our offensive effort slowed down in the second half, it was complimented by a stellar defensive effort that allowed Wesleyan only one lone goal for the entire 30 minutes. We had fantastic pressure on the ball and great doubles coming from Bo, Ellen, Pecks, Annie and Sconch, continually frustrating the attack for the Cardinals. The defense was all over the loose balls, collecting 12 total as a group. They were most impressive in the waning minutes of the game when they were able to pass around the Wesleyan pressure and handle the ball as time ticked off the clock.

This was a great win for the team - one that secures a NESCAC tournament spot, with a conference record of 5-2. We are excited to host Williams on Saturday at Noon - should be a beautiful day for lacrosse. Go Bants!