Colorado University Athletics
Liz Phillips defends against a Cal attacker
Photo by: Casey Paul
Colorado Dominates In Victory Over Cal
March 19, 2023 | Lacrosse
BOULDER – Colorado Lacrosse won its third straight game with a 20-3 victory over Cal here Sunday afternoon at Kittredge Field in an all-around dominant performance.
The Buffs dropped their first four games of the season, but have seemed to gain some momentum with wins over Ohio State, Stanford and now Cal.
"Obviously, we made a couple changes in terms of the lineup, but overall, our players are just buying into doing the little things that are making the bigger plays come a little bit easier for us on both ends of the field," stated head coach Ann Elliott Whidden. "We've been talking a lot about being disciplined, which is doing those little things, committing to them throughout and being aggressive at the same time. I think we're starting to understand the balance there, which is helping us."
From start to finish, CU made few mistakes and controlled the game with time of possession. Winning the first four draws of the game, Colorado's offense capitalized on each one, jumping out to a quick 4-0 lead. The Buffs didn't slow down the rest of the day on either side of the ball.
The defense allowed just nine shots on goal and one free-position shot all game. The free-position shot came in the first quarter and was saved by Grace Donnelly. Donnelly and Danielle Heintz split time in net today and both recorded a 66.7 save percentage.
On offense, four Buffs had at least three goals while three Buffs recorded at least two assists. Ashley Stokes led the team with four goals and added two assists as well. Charlie Rudy, Sam McGee and Liz Phillips all recorded a hat trick against the Golden Bears.
Holding a 12-2 lead at halftime, Colorado was able to put in a lot of new and young faces into the game in the second half.
"I think they played great. Our team practices hard weekly. Our scout team does a really good job of preparing us and competing and I thought they were all ready to compete today," Whidden commented. "They showed up and again, continued that balance of discipline and aggressiveness and trying to take advantage of some of their opportunity. So I was proud of them today."
The Buffs will look to continue this momentum in a tough conference matchup against the No.18-ranked USC Trojans in Los Angeles, Calif. on Friday, March 24th.
"It's going to be a tough challenge for us, but I think if we can keep our confidence up from these last three games, continue to commit to those little things and find that balance I think it should be a good, hard fought game, and hopefully come down to the 60 minutes and see who's on top then," Whidden ended with.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
Colorado took a 3-0 lead within the first two and a half minutes of the game, forcing Cal to take its first timeout. The three-goal lead was made up of a goal from Rudy and two goals from Stokes. With 7:21 to go in the first quarter, Sophie Halus picked up a ground ball and took it down the length of the field before dishing it to Rudy for a goal as the Buffs took a 5-0 lead. After a successful clear, CU called a timeout with 39 seconds remaining in the quarter. Colorado held a five-goal advantage going into the second.
The Buffs earned a player-up opportunity with just under 9:30 to go and they wasted no time putting one in the back of the net when Stokes scored her third goal of the day to give CU a 7-0 lead. The Bears scored their first goal of the day with 7:35 remaining in the first half. Colorado responded quickly with a free-position goal just under a minute later. While trailing 9-1, Cal called another timeout. With 3:30 to go, the Bears scored once again on a dodge down the middle to make it 9-2. Shortly after, Rudy gained some separation on a face dodge and scored on a bounce shot to the top right corner. Sam McGee scored a quick-stick goal on an assist from Stokes to give Colorado a 12-2 lead heading into halftime.
The Buffs scored within the first three minutes of the second half on a fast break to extend their lead to 11 at 13-2. Phillips scored on an assist from Rudy with just under two minutes to go in third quarter. After the first goal scored by CU in the quarter, Colorado scored two more compared to Cal's one. The Buffs led 15-3 before the fourth.
To start the final quarter, CU put most of their starters on the bench to give its other players game experience. With under 10 minutes remaining in the game, Madeline Pisani scored her first goal of the season to put the Buffs up 17-3. Colorado called a timeout following the goal. CU continued to dominate in the fourth quarter, scoring three more goals and winning 20-3.
UP NEXT:
Colorado Lacrosse will continue conference play on the road against USC on Friday, March 24th at 4:00 p.m. MT.
The Buffs dropped their first four games of the season, but have seemed to gain some momentum with wins over Ohio State, Stanford and now Cal.
"Obviously, we made a couple changes in terms of the lineup, but overall, our players are just buying into doing the little things that are making the bigger plays come a little bit easier for us on both ends of the field," stated head coach Ann Elliott Whidden. "We've been talking a lot about being disciplined, which is doing those little things, committing to them throughout and being aggressive at the same time. I think we're starting to understand the balance there, which is helping us."
From start to finish, CU made few mistakes and controlled the game with time of possession. Winning the first four draws of the game, Colorado's offense capitalized on each one, jumping out to a quick 4-0 lead. The Buffs didn't slow down the rest of the day on either side of the ball.
The defense allowed just nine shots on goal and one free-position shot all game. The free-position shot came in the first quarter and was saved by Grace Donnelly. Donnelly and Danielle Heintz split time in net today and both recorded a 66.7 save percentage.
On offense, four Buffs had at least three goals while three Buffs recorded at least two assists. Ashley Stokes led the team with four goals and added two assists as well. Charlie Rudy, Sam McGee and Liz Phillips all recorded a hat trick against the Golden Bears.
Holding a 12-2 lead at halftime, Colorado was able to put in a lot of new and young faces into the game in the second half.
"I think they played great. Our team practices hard weekly. Our scout team does a really good job of preparing us and competing and I thought they were all ready to compete today," Whidden commented. "They showed up and again, continued that balance of discipline and aggressiveness and trying to take advantage of some of their opportunity. So I was proud of them today."
The Buffs will look to continue this momentum in a tough conference matchup against the No.18-ranked USC Trojans in Los Angeles, Calif. on Friday, March 24th.
"It's going to be a tough challenge for us, but I think if we can keep our confidence up from these last three games, continue to commit to those little things and find that balance I think it should be a good, hard fought game, and hopefully come down to the 60 minutes and see who's on top then," Whidden ended with.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
Colorado took a 3-0 lead within the first two and a half minutes of the game, forcing Cal to take its first timeout. The three-goal lead was made up of a goal from Rudy and two goals from Stokes. With 7:21 to go in the first quarter, Sophie Halus picked up a ground ball and took it down the length of the field before dishing it to Rudy for a goal as the Buffs took a 5-0 lead. After a successful clear, CU called a timeout with 39 seconds remaining in the quarter. Colorado held a five-goal advantage going into the second.
The Buffs earned a player-up opportunity with just under 9:30 to go and they wasted no time putting one in the back of the net when Stokes scored her third goal of the day to give CU a 7-0 lead. The Bears scored their first goal of the day with 7:35 remaining in the first half. Colorado responded quickly with a free-position goal just under a minute later. While trailing 9-1, Cal called another timeout. With 3:30 to go, the Bears scored once again on a dodge down the middle to make it 9-2. Shortly after, Rudy gained some separation on a face dodge and scored on a bounce shot to the top right corner. Sam McGee scored a quick-stick goal on an assist from Stokes to give Colorado a 12-2 lead heading into halftime.
The Buffs scored within the first three minutes of the second half on a fast break to extend their lead to 11 at 13-2. Phillips scored on an assist from Rudy with just under two minutes to go in third quarter. After the first goal scored by CU in the quarter, Colorado scored two more compared to Cal's one. The Buffs led 15-3 before the fourth.
To start the final quarter, CU put most of their starters on the bench to give its other players game experience. With under 10 minutes remaining in the game, Madeline Pisani scored her first goal of the season to put the Buffs up 17-3. Colorado called a timeout following the goal. CU continued to dominate in the fourth quarter, scoring three more goals and winning 20-3.
UP NEXT:
Colorado Lacrosse will continue conference play on the road against USC on Friday, March 24th at 4:00 p.m. MT.
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