April 2, 2014
ANNAPOLIS, Md. - The San Diego State women's lacrosse team suffered a loss at No. --/19 Navy, 14-9, in an aggressive, physical game on Wednesday afternoon at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium.
It was the Aztecs' final non-conference game of the season, as they jump back into Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) play on Friday, April 11, at Denver. Each of SDSU's last three non-conference opponents at least received votes in either the IWLCA Coaches Poll or the Brine Women's Media Poll at the time they played.
Junior Christina Ricciardulli and sophomore Felice Artuso led the Aztecs with two goals apiece, while junior Michaela Jarvis, an Annapolis, Md., native, and sophomore Andrea Killebrew each recorded a goal with two assists. Junior Grace Korandovich recorded a game-high three draw controls, and Artuso scooped up two groundballs.
San Diego State (6-5, 3-1 MPSF) fell behind early as Navy raced out to a 3-0 lead before pushing its advantage to 7-2 with 11:05 remaining in the first half. Consecutive goals by sophomore Alexa Comfort and junior Bailey Ewing pulled the Aztecs within 7-4, but it was the closest they would get the rest of the way.
Navy (11-1, 4-1 PL) scored the first two goals of the second half to make it 10-4, and went on another 3-0 run later in the half to extend its lead to eight. The Aztecs looked like a much different team in the second half though, only being outscored by one, 6-5, after intermission. SDSU outshot Navy in the second half, 17-13, and also held a 10-7 edge in groundballs during the game's final 30 minutes.
"I liked the way we fought," head coach Kylee White said. "I think we saw some glimpses of teamwork and some long defensive stands, but we waited too long to play like we wanted to play, and you can't do that against good teams. We've got to show up from the first whistle and play our best.
"We definitely came out better in the second half, and we're moving in the right direction. We're gaining confidence and learning from these losses."