The women’s lacrosse team’s star forwards remain confident in their playoff chances heading into the final stretch of conference play after a frustrating series of close losses.
With just four regular season games remaining, the Bears are sitting on a current overall record of 5-8 and a conference record of 1-3. As it stands, the team will be faced with multiple must-win games to secure their spot in the Centennial Conference Playoffs.
Forward Maeve Leonzi ‘25, who is currently leading the team in goals, says that the biggest challenges this season have been the close games, two of them being to conference rivals Dickinson and Washington College.
“We’ve had a lot of close games that we could have won that I think is really putting us in a situation that we didn’t want to be in this season,” Leonzi said. “We are playing a lot of nationally ranked teams but it’s bettering us as players, so I think overall it’s been a great season.”
Fellow attacker Dana DeSiato ‘27, who currently leads the team in points and the conference in assists, shares a similar perspective. When asked about her assessment of the season so far, she answered, “I think our team is better than our record shows…Now that we are in conference play, our team has been fighting right until the last minute, and the games have been really close.”
Despite the frustrating defeats, Leonzi says that the team remains optimistic and excited about their upcoming games. “We are all ready to lock in and put our heads down and work these next few weeks to get the outcomes that we want and be in the position to go into the playoffs, so I feel very strong and positive about our chances.”
In the 2024 season, the Women’s Lacrosse team failed to qualify for the Centennial postseason tournament, which has become a key motivating factor in their last stretch of games.
“Our team really wants to prove it to people that we can compete and make playoffs after last season,” DeSiato said. “I think all the players are willing to do whatever we need to get there. We haven’t given up and I’m confident we will play our best in these final games and make it.”
The last four conference matchups for the regular season will be challenging for the Bears, with three out of four schools having better current records.
Leonzi says that the key goals of these last few games will be taking advantage of the small opportunities throughout the game. She believes this is what will help give the Bears the edge in close battles. She also cites team chemistry as one of the most positive aspects of their play, praising many of her teammate’s skills and efforts. “I think a positive aspect heading into these final games is that we’re all best friends, and we have great connections on and off the field…they [her teammates] give me a lot of confidence and they are a huge positive aspect of this team.”
The women’s lacrosse team’s next matchup will be against Swarthmore College on April 16th, when they hope to convert their confidence into wins for their playoff push.