DENVER, Colo. – Two teams who had not seen each other all season met in Friday's semifinal, with the Colorado Mesa (8-4, 7-1 RMAC) women's lacrosse team coming out on top, 15-13, over UCCS to advance to Sunday's championship.
The Mavericks had earned tournament berths in the past but fell in the first rounds, making Sunday's championship appearance the first in program history.
Of the 43 shots taken by CMU, 34 were targeted towards the goal mouth. The team also finished a flawless 15-of-15 in clears, held a 19-11 edge in draw controls and converted on six free position shots.
Kiley Davis tallied five points on four goals and an assist, making it back-to-back games with four goals and matching her season high point total.
Ashton Whittle and
Lauren Wick added hat tricks into the mix. Whittle had a team high three ground balls and secured 10 draw controls.
Kelsey Viger was a force in the Maverick back line causing a season high four turnovers.
Adelaine Charlsen racked up a season high 10 saves to earn the win in goal.
HOW IT HAPPENED
UCCS went up 2-0 early, before Davis put in her first goal of the day to get CMU in the mix. It became a 4-1 deficit, before a trio of Maverick players strung together a run to tie it up.
A goal by Davis under the 5-minute mark gave CMU their first lead of the game at 6-5. With 30-seconds to go, and down a player the Mountain Lions were able to even the score at six going into the break.
As the second half got underway, UCCS regained the lead with a 3-0 scoring run to have the upper hand at 9-6. Their scoring run was then match by a 7-0 rung by the Mavericks to be the first to double digits and lead 13-9.
With under 10-minutes to play, the teams would trade points but CMU never relinquished the lead. Kiera Lowe for UCCS scored at 5:28, and would the final goal for either team.
UP NEXT
The RMAC Championship match is scheduled for Sunday at 12 p.m. on the Regis Lacrosse pitch, and will feature another nationally ranked matchup between host Regis and Colorado Mesa. The Mavericks seek their first tournament title and the automatic qualifier.
