Florida had its first taste of overtime play Sunday, and it didn’t go well.
A two-game road trip in New York started with a 15-3 victory over Le Moyne on Friday, but the Gators (9-5, 1-2 American Lacrosse Conference) couldn’t hold on in a double-overtime match against Colgate on Sunday. No. 20 UF lost 12-11 to the Raiders (8-6, 3-1 Patriot League).
Midfielder Caroline Chesterman and attacker Caroline Cochran led Florida with three scores a piece while attacker Ashley Bruns added two.
Midfielder Brittany Dashiell and attacker Janine Hillier each dished out two assists on the day.
UF looked like it would continue its dominance from Friday when it got out to a 7-2 lead with 6:19 left in the first half, but five-straight scores by Colgate tied the match at seven about eight minutes into the second half.
At the end of regulation, the teams each had 10 goals.
In the two halves, Florida took five more shots than the Raiders and two more draw controls. However, it had six fewer ground balls and seven fewer saves.
In the overtime periods, UF continued its less-than-stellar play, but draw controls proved to be the downfall for the young squad as it allowed Colgate to control all five of the draws in extra time.
“We struggled with finishing,” UF coach Amanda O’Leary said. “Against Le Moyne we went for 44, today we had 35 shots on goal, and scored 11. We need to start finishing our shots, because we are certainly getting opportunities.”
She added that on defense, her squad did not slide to the double teams and did not stop the one-on-one matchups as it allowed Colgate’s Courtney Miller to score five goals, including the deciding score in the second overtime.
After losing a commanding lead in regulation and the effort in overtime, O’Leary questioned the Gators’ desire.
“Did we want it more?” O’Leary said. “Could we have won? We had opportunities, and unfortunately we weren’t successful. It was a tough game overall. Offensively and defensively, we just didn’t play as well as we needed to play to win the game.”
