The women’s lacrosse team lost their final game of this season this past Saturday against the visiting Wittenberg Tigers.
Wittenberg claimed the first eight goals of the game, but junior midfielder Emilye Denny was able to reestablish DePauw’s presence after putting the ladies on the board with 12:45 remaining in the first half.
Denny also converted another two goals in the second half to lead DePauw's team with three goals on the day. Denny finished the season with 22 goals total.
Heading into the second half, the DePauw Tigers needed to fight back from a hefty 10-2 deficit.
“They took us by surprise and really made us work for our last game,” said junior attack Taylor Summers.
Giving it their all, the ladies were able to secure an even 7-7 second half performance.
Yet, due to the slow start in the first half, it wasn’t enough to overthrow the visiting Tigers, and the whistle blew with a final score of 17-9.
“We were too slow [in the] first half to keep up with them and shut them down right away," Summers said. "We made them hold their ground, however, [in the] second half, when we finally started to come back and gain momentum. We got our flow back and had a streak of goals when we finally started to have fun again and just played together as that team one last time."
Summers made a strong performance in the game with a contribution of two goals. Additionally, first-years Erica Rapelje and Madi Lozanoski and seniors Elizabeth McCracken and Abby Snively were able to record a goal each. Cracken also picked up a new team-high of two assists on the day.
Defensively, junior goalkeeper Liz Hawkins recorded nine saves in front of the net.
“Our strength was definitely our defense playing well against their good attack,” Flynn said.
DePauw closed out its season at 5-11 overall and 3-5 in North Coast Athletic Conference play. Despite the losing record, the team has shown improvement over the course of the season.
“We keep getting better every year, which is what matters," Flynn said. "I think we had great moments and had a great time the whole season playing together."
In fact, when asked to describe the season in one word, Flynn had quite the enthusiastic answer: “Fun!”
The ladies will be participating in a shortened fall season to prepare for next spring, which will mark the program's fifth season.
In the meantime, the team will be working hard in the off season to continue to build on the foundation that they have spent this season constructing.
“It was a great season, and I’m definitely going to miss our seniors a lot next season,” Flynn said. “I’m proud of all we were able to accomplish.”