USC Lacrosse Falls in the NCAA Tournament to No. 5 Denver

Friday, May 12

Denver, CO

2:00 PM

USC

16-4

University of Denver

20-0

USC

Denver

Photo by: Paul Goldberg

USC Lacrosse Falls in the NCAA Tournament to No. 5 Denver

May 12, 2023 | Women's Lacrosse

Box Score

The Women of Troy finish their season 16-4, with a Pac-12 title on their resume

DENVER - The 18th-ranked USC Lacrosse squad (16-4) wrapped up its season in the NCAA First Round, losing to No. 5 Denver 10-7 (20-0) in Denver on May 12 at Peter Barton Stadium.

KEY PLAYERS:

Sophomore Christina Gagnon posted her second hat trick of this season, as she led the offense with three crucial goals. Redshirt sophomore Isabelle Vitale also posted three points, as she put one in the net and assisted on two other goals.
The defense was led by senior Olivia Dooely, who claimed three caused turnovers and picked up one groundball. Graduate student Katie Ramsay and senior Danielle Carson were right behind her, as they both posted two caused turnovers.
Ramsay, Gagnon and sophomore Catherine Lord posted two draw controls in the affair.
Junior goalie Kait Devir allowed ten goals and posted five saves on the losing decision.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

The Trojans were stunted in the first quarter by the fouls they produced. Denver got on the board four times, with one coming via free position and one happening during a man-up situation for the Pioneers. With this in mind and the fact that Denver owned a 4-1 advantage in the draw controls category, the Trojans were down 4-0 at the end of the first.
The Pioneers continue their offensive success to begin the second with two straight to make it 6-0. However, at 10:21 in the second quarter, the Women of Troy started to show signs of life. Sophomore Maddie Dora got USC on the board, and after that, the defense was physical and dominant, as it held the opposing offense to zero goals in the remaining portion of the first half. The Trojans trailed 6-1 heading into the halftime break.
Everything that could go right for USC did in the third, as a rally gave the Women of Troy new life. While the defense surrendered no goals in the quarter, the offense came alive. Gagnon gave life to the rally at 9:41 with her 14th of the season. Junior Maggie Brown would score less than a minute later at 9:03 to make it 6-3. Soon the captain, junior Shelby Tilton, got in on the action with a one-timer at 7:57; from there, two more were added to tie it, as Gagnon claimed her second and Vitale got one at 3:55 to knot it at six a piece.
The tight contest was anyone's to win entering into the fourth. In those moments, however, Denver showcased why they were the No. 5 team in the country, as they opened up the scoring with two straight. Gagnon would stop the bleeding at 10:41 with her hat trick goal, but it would only put a band aid on a wound that would be opened back up. The Pioneers capitalized on two more opportunities, and soon, the No. 5 seed would advance to the NCAA Second Round.

GAME NOTES:

The No. 18 Trojans finish their 2023 campaign 16-4 with a Pac-12 title.
USC is now 4-6 all-time in NCAA Tournament games and is now 2-3 in the first round, and is 0-3 in its last three appearances.
The Women of Troy are 4-5 all-time against Denver and are 0-2 when they play the Pioneers in the postseason.
USC is now 3-13 against teams in the IWLCA Top Five. In 2023 it was 0-3 versus IWLCA-ranked opponents.
The Trojans are 2-3 when they score less than ten goals this season.