MEDFORD, Mass. – The No. 7 ranked Wesleyan women's lacrosse team dominated No. 5 Tufts on Saturday, defeating the Jumbos 14-10 at Bello Field and moving into sole possession of second place in the NESCAC standings. Wesleyan (10-2, 6-2 NESCAC) earned their first win over Tufts (9-3, 5-2 NESCAC) since the 2017 season.
 
Even with the final four-goal margin, the Cardinals largely dominated play, leading at different times 4-0, 10-2, and 14-5 throughout play as Tufts scored three goals in the final 4:41 of the game. A 6-0 Wesleyan run in the second quarter loomed large in the outcome while a 4-1 third quarter Cardinal run put the game away.
 
Kate Balicki '23 pumped in a team-leading five points including four goals and one assist as she has multi-goal games in five of the last six contests. Olivia Lai '23 and Laura Baine '24 each finished with hat tricks while Molly Greer '24 was sensational with two points, three caused turnovers, and two ground balls.
 
It was all Wesleyan in the early going, with the Cardinals rattling off four unanswered before Tufts netted their first with 2:20 remaining in the first quarter. Four different Cardinals scored in the first as Wesleyan outshot Tufts 10-6.
 
Taking a 4-2 lead into the second, another extended Cardinal scoring run made it 10-2 Wesleyan up until the final minute of the stanza. Lai scored on a free position goal, kickstarting a 6-0 run with goals coming from Baine, Balicki, Lai again, Greer on the player-up opportunity, and Chessy Greenwald '23.
 
Six goals were scored by Wesleyan in the second quarter on just eight shots while Abby Wolk '22 denied the Jumbos on some premium scoring chances, as the graduate goalkeeper made three saves on four Tufts' shot attempts in the quarter.
 
It was 10-4 Cardinals early in the third before Baine and Balicki found the back of the net to extend the lead back up to eight goals. After Emma Joyce scored for Tufts, Baine and Balicki came through with goals yet again, extending the Cardinal advantage to a nine-goal cushion, the largest of the game.
 
Tufts tried to make a game of it, with the deficit being cut to 14-7 with 14:13 remaining, but an almost 10-minute scoring drought followed and the game was later settled in a 14-10 victory for Wesleyan.
 
A key stat in the outcome of this one was in turnovers as the Cardinals committed just seven, their lowest single-game total since the 2016 season. Wesleyan outshot Tufts 32-27 and won the ground ball battle 15-10.
 
Wolk finished the game with nine saves including three each in both the second and third quarters. The nine saves is a new season-high for Wolk who picked up her eighth win of the season and 22^nd of her career.
 
The Cardinals continue a hectic slate with a Sunday afternoon road game at Endicott, which will be the third road game in five days for Wesleyan.