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In their first-ever taste of the NCAA Tournament, the No. 4
seed Gators lacrosse team (15-3) hosts Mountain Pacific Sports
Federation Champion and 13th-seeded Stanford (16-2) today at 1
p.m., in the opening round.
Can Florida win without a big contribution from Kitty
Cullen? In the Gators’ 15 wins this season, Cullen has
scored an average of 4.4 goals per game. But in the team’s three
losses, the sophomore has struggled with just 1.25 goals per game.
With UF losing two out of three games heading into Saturday, it
remains to be seen whether Florida can beat a top-tier team without
Cullen at her best. “The great thing about Kitty is that she just
wants the best for the team, for the team to win. No matter if she
has six goals or one goal or no goals – she’s still playing her
hardest,” assistant coach Caitlyn McFadden said.
How can the Gators slow down the Cardinal’s
offense? Stanford powered through all six of its
conference opponents and three ranked teams on the back of the
nation’s second most proficient offense. The Cardinal offense has
never been held to single digits. With Florida’s attack averaging
less than 10 goals over its last four games, the Gators will have
to rely on a stalwart back line to keep shots away from goalie
Mikey Meagher. “They take a lot of strong 1-v-1’s, and in order to
stop them we’re going to have to communicate a lot in our defense
and have those slides to protect each other,” defender Emily Dohony
said.
Will the Dizney Stadium’s atmosphere play a
factor? Saturday’s contest will mark the first time in
NCAA history that a tournament game has been held in Florida — a
fact that’s not lost on midfielder Caroline Chesterman. The
sophomore said earlier in the week that she expects the Cardinal to
struggle amidst the 90-degree heat and a rowdy UF crowd, which she
called the best in the country. “You never see the type of fans or
just the excitement that lacrosse gets down here,” she said. A
month ago, the Gators extended their 11-game winning streak at home
behind a season-high 1,518 spectators.
