GETTYSBURG, PA – Trailing by three midway through the fourth quarter, the No. 12 nationally ranked Wesleyan women's lacrosse team cut the deficit to one with 2:48 remaining but No. 5 Washington & Lee managed to hold on and defeat the Cardinals 13-11 in NCAA Third Round action at Gettysburg on a sweltering Saturday afternoon. The loss ends another terrific season for Wesleyan (14-5) who managed their second-highest single-season win total and fourth NCAA Tournament appearance in program history.
 
Just as Julia Thomson scored with 6:32 left that put the Generals ahead 12-9, W&L seemed to be in control but Laura Baine '24 put in a pair of goals less than three minutes apart to make it a one-goal game heading into the final 2:48 of regulation. On the ensuing draw, Thomson corralled the loose ball and after holding possession for well over a minute, Walker McKnight put in a free position goal to put W&L back up by two with 1:20 left.
 
The all-important draw to follow McKnight's free position strike was picked up by Alex Petras in heavy traffic, giving the Generals the ball with the shot clock turned off and leading by two. Wesleyan spent the final minute trying to force one more turnover to no avail as the Generals held off the Cardinals' late rally attempt to secure a 13-11 victory.
 
With the temperatures ranging in the low 90s and humidity wrecking havoc, it was far less than ideal conditions for both sides. Even in the heat, Wesleyan put in the first two goals of the game as Kendall Mittleman '23 found the back of the net 1:17 into play before Baine scored her first of four on the day more than five minutes later.
 
The Generals' leading scorer Hanna Bishop put in her first of the day to get W&L on the board before Katherine Faria followed the tie the score at 2-2. With under a minute to play in the first, Olivia Lai '23 scored in transition to give Wesleyan a 3-2 advantage after one.
 
Wesleyan continued to hold a one-goal lead up until the tail end of the second quarter as Bishop scored three consecutive goals that pushed W&L out in front with a 6-4 lead. The Cardinals did manage another late goal in the final minute of a quarter, this time seeing Gil Horst '23 score to make it 6-5 Generals at the half.
 
Another 3-0 W&L run to start the second half stretched the Generals' lead to 9-5 before Wesleyan found their footing and responded with a 4-1 run before the end of the third quarter. Lai and Baine started the run with unassisted goals before Brooke Nelson '24 and Lai finished off feeds from Mittleman to lower the deficit to 10-9 W&L heading into the fourth.
 
Neither side scored for over six minutes in the fourth before Bishop scored what was her fifth goal of the game and Thomson followed with the woman-up goal that made it 12-9 before Wesleyan's late comeback bid fell just short.
 
Shots favored W&L slightly at 23-20 while turnovers played a big role in the outcome as Wesleyan had 23 for the game while the Generals committed 18 including 0 in the fourth quarter. The two sides finished level in draw controls for the game at 14 apiece while the Cardinals went 3-for-3 on free position shots and W&L finished 4-for-6.
 
Mittleman led the Cardinal attack with five points on one goal and four assists. This is Mittleman's sixth game this season with four assists, tying a career-high and giving her 39 to finish the 2022 season.
 
Baine tied a career-high with four goals, as this marked the fourth time in her career (second this season) that the sophomore has finished with a four-goal game. Lai posted three goals on three shots, as the junior All-American recorded her 16^th hat trick in 20 games this season. Lai's 2022 campaign included 63 goals, which is the second-highest single-season total in program history.
 
Erin Trotta '23 made history as the First Team All-Region defender recorded three caused turnovers, giving her a single-season program record 37 this season. She also added three ground balls, finishing the season with 32.
 
Lucy Gretsky '23 tallied a career-high five draw controls to lead the team in that department. Abby Wolk '22 made the start in net and made two saves in the first half. Corin Grady '22 entered to start the third quarter and recorded three saves in the second half.
 
Bishop led the Generals with five goals while Katherine Faria recorded four goals and one assist and Allie Schwab tallied four assists. Eugenie Rovegno had a big day as she recorded three draw controls, three ground balls and two caused turnovers.
 
Wesleyan concludes another terrific season, totaling the second-most wins in program history as well as the program's second-ever NESCAC Tournament win. The Cardinals made their fourth consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance in a traditional, non-COVID canceled or shortened season and advanced to the NCAA Third Round for the third time in program history.