The Youngstown State women's lacrosse team dropped a 14-11 decision to Cincinnati on Wednesday at the Watson and Tressel Training Site.
The Penguins fall to 1-2 while the Bearcats improve to 4-1.
Natalie Calandra-Ryan tied the program single-game draw control record with 12. Calandra-Ryan also tallied two goals to give her 10 on the season. Calandra-Ryan delivered a four-point performance, adding two assists to her impressive stat line.
Jordan Miller (2), Erin Clark (2), and Sydney Bumstead (2) also had multi-goal outings for the Penguins. Shannyn Cullen, Ali Korin, and Tristen Chang each scored a goal for the Guins.
Defensively, Mikaela Staranko had an impressive day in the net with 14 saves across 35 Bearcats' shots for a .500 save percentage. Aryss Lindsey had a game-high three caused turnovers and also tallied two draw controls and ground balls.
Ava Goeller led the Bearcats' scoring effort with four while Camryn Callaghan netted three.
The Penguins exchanged goals with Cincinnati to start the game 1-1 as Korin found the back of the net on an assist from Calandra-Ryan at the 12:26 mark of the opening quarter.
The Bearcats went on a 4-0 run before Cullen scored her first goal of the season off a free-position attempt with 34 seconds remaining in the first quarter, sending YSU into the second down 5-2.
Youngstown State scored quickly to start the second when Bumstead found the back of the net unassisted, making the score 5-3 at the 14:17 mark of the second quarter.
Both teams battled defensively as neither team scored for over 11 minutes until the Bearcats ended the drought, scoring a goal with 3:09 before halftime.
The Penguins then scored back-to-back goals when both Miller and Calandra-Ryan found the back of the net in under a minute of play. Cincinnati netted a quick score before halftime, and the Penguins closed the first half down two, 7-5.Â
YSU couldn't find their footing at the start of the third quarter giving up three unanswered Cincinnati goals. At 2:19 in the third, the Penguins scored their first goal of the second half as Bumstead accepted a pass from Cullen and fired it into the net.
The Penguins and Bearcats went back and forth to start the fourth quarter of play with goals by YSU's Clark and Miller. The Guins then closed out the final minutes of play with a 3-1 scoring run as Chang, Clark, and Calandra-Ryan found the back of the net, making the final score, 14-11.
Youngstown State will face a quick around, returning to WATTS on Friday to host Duquesne and close out their February home-stand. First draw against the Dukes is set for 4 p.m.
