The women’s lacrosse team was roughed up this past weekend by undefeated UCAA rivals Skidmore and Union, losing the two games by a combined score of 23-6.
Friday’s match against Beth Hallenbeck’s Thoroughbreds was fairly one-sided. The Red Hawks mustered only 10 shots against their former coach’s team, while RPI goaltender Meghan Gaul faced a 36-shot barrage. Gaul had 12 saves on the day.
Skidmore mounted a 5-0 lead before Rensselaer finally got on the board on a Kim Yates goal, but the Thoroughbreds rattled off the next eight in a row to run away with it, eventually winning 14-3. Yates scored twice, and attacker Jenn Celli tallied the other Red Hawk goal.
Saturday’s match in Schenectady started off much closer, largely due to the netminding skills of Gaul, who made 22 saves in a losing effort. The Dutchwomen opened with four goals in the first five minutes of the match, but were kept off the board for the rest of the half by the Red Hawks. Yates struck first once again for Rensselaer, and a pair of late goals by freshman Michelle Delarm reduced the Red Hawk deficit to one at halftime.
That was all RPI’s offense had, though. Union’s Elizabeth Soto needed to make only five saves all game, and a string of five unaswered goals led to a 9-3 Rensselaer loss.
The Red Hawks begin a four-game homestand Friday against the Yellowjackets of Rochester, followed by the Vassar Brewers on Tuesday. Both matches begin at 4 pm.
