The women's and men's lacrosse teams continued their strong starts to the season this week, with wins over Fredonia and Potsdam, respectively.
On March 29, the women's lacrosse team was scheduled to play in Rochester, but heavy snowfall the previous night made field conditions unsuitable for the game, and it was rescheduled for Wednesday, April 2.
On Tuesday, the team secured a close 11-10 victory against visiting Fredonia. Fredonia scored three unanswered goals in the first half and took a 5-4 lead into halftime. After some back and forth scoring in the second half, Geneseo sophomore Tara Murphy scored an unassisted goal with just under eleven minutes left in the game. Then, with seven minutes left on the clock, sophomore Abby Hungerford scored a thrilling free position goal and Geneseo held on to win.
"Overall it was not our best game," said coach Carly Ritchlin. "We came up with a win, [but] we will let Tuesday's game remind us that teams are out to beat us and we need to step up."
A half an hour before the game started, a brief but heavy downpour soaked the field and made conditions difficult for the two teams.
"The weather was definitely an element to take into consideration and as a team, we were having an off day," said senior Shauna Leonard, who scored three times in the match. "Because we are such a strong, determined team we were able to work through it."
The Lady Knights are off to a strong start, with a 4-1 overall record and a 1-0 record in SUNYAC play. The team's single loss came last Wednesday against St. Lawrence.
"Yes we are off to a strong start, however a good team is never satisfied," said Ritchlin. "We have some big games coming up and it will be a battle."
The men's team, meanwhile, came away from SUNY Potsdam Sunday with an 11-4 victory over Clarkson University.
Trailing 3-1 after the first two periods of the game, Geneseo took the lead with four goals in the third period, and finished strong with six more goals in the fourth period.
"I think the best thing we did was stay patient," said men's coach Jim Lyons. "We were down early against a team that likes to slow the pace of the game down. Once we started scoring early in the third you could tell we were in control."
Defense was also a crucial factor in the Knights' victory.
"On Sunday we played incredible team defense the entire game," commented sophomore goalie Dennis Costanza, who finished Sunday's game with 14 saves.
The men's team is off to a superb 5-1 start as they begin conference play this weekend. The Knights are averaging over 13 points per game on offense, and their only loss has been a one-point defeat last Wednesday against Hamilton College.
"I knew we could have success this year, but I also knew we would have eight new starters out of 10," said Lyons. "I think the guys have worked hard and are having a great year so far."