HAVERFORD, Pa. — The Haverford College women's lacrosse team (10-5, 5-1 CC) secured a 12–8 victory over Dickinson (6-9, 1-6 CC) on Swan Field Saturday afternoon. Prior to the game, the Fords honored their seven seniors with a Senior Day ceremony, recognizing their commitment over the past four seasons. Haverford built a commanding lead with a five-goal second quarter, as the Red Devils were unable to overcome the early advantage.
Bella Gattuso led the way for the Scarlet and Black with five goals, putting together an efficient outing with six shots on goal on just seven attempts. Brooke Epstein added four goals, highlighted by the 200th of her career on her fourth tally of the game, moving her into second place all-time in program history, while collecting a game-high seven draw controls. Daniela Martini contributed one goal and two assists to provide additional support to the attack, while Shaina Lewis anchored the defense with eight saves. Finley Jordan caused three turnovers, while Kiri Jensen, Lauren Anderson, and Alexis Brown each scooped up a team-high three ground balls.
The first quarter began with Gattuso opening the scoring at 12:08, quickly followed by another from a free-position shot at 11:34 to give the Fords an early two-goal edge. Epstein extended the lead to 3–0 with a goal assisted by Martini at 6:30. Dickinson responded with a player-up goal by Abby Geary, assisted by Grace Kelly, at 5:49. The quarter concluded with Haverford leading 3–1.
Haverford and the Red Devils exchanged goals early in the second quarter, with Epstein scoring at 12:58, assisted by Martini, and Heidi Schmidt responding with a free-position goal at 11:59 to make it a 4–2 game. Gattuso then scored twice at 8:09 and 6:07, while Dickinson answered with two goals from Sage Whiteside, including one at 4:47. Epstein's second goal of the quarter, assisted by Sophie Jaffe at 2:28, extended the lead to 7–4. Martini closed the half with a goal with 14 seconds remaining, assisted by Mikelle Smith, giving the Scarlet and Black an 8–4 advantage at the break.
Gattuso opened the third-quarter scoring at 12:00 to extend Haverford's lead to 9–4. The Red Devils responded with Schmidt scoring at 8:59, assisted by Geary, to trim the deficit to 9–5. The Fords regained momentum with Epstein's goal at 6:14, followed by Smith adding another at 1:22 to push the lead to 11–5. Despite several attempts from Dickinson, including multiple saves by Lewis, Haverford maintained control heading into the final quarter.
In the fourth, Dickinson attempted to close the gap, starting with a goal by Schmidt at 8:21, assisted by Meghan McDonald. The visitors continued their push with another goal from Alex Hackett at 5:52, narrowing the deficit to 11–7. Haverford responded with a goal from Jaffe, assisted by McNamara at 5:10, to go back up by five, 12–7. However, the Red Devils' Schuyler Cerow capitalized on a free-position opportunity at 4:16. Despite the late push, the Fords held on for the 12–8 victory.
Haverford returns to action on Wednesday, April 22, hosting Washington College on Swan Field at 7 p.m.
