Boston College lacrosse completed the regular season with a ACC regular season title in hand for the second consecutive year on Saturday afternoon. The No.1 team in the nation finished 17-0 yet again after defeating Louisville, 19-6, on Senior Day, putting BC in a great position heading into postseason play. The Eagles had 10 different goal scorers in the rout of the Cardinals, and the 13-goal win marked BC’s second largest margin of victory this year.
The Eagles jumped out to an early lead after Cara Urbank put one past Cardinals keeper Rachel Florek only 51 seconds into the game off of a great feed by Kenzie Kent. The assist—Kent’s 58th of the year—could very well secure her position as the national leader for the season.
BC (17-0, 7-0 Atlantic Coast) kept pushing offensively, with Dempsey Arsenault and Elizabeth Miller scoring in the span of five minutes to push the Eagles lead to 3-0. Arsenault was undoubtedly the Eagles’ star, scoring six goals and adding an assist in the victory. Louisville (5-12, 0-7) managed to find its way on the scoreboard a minute later, but Arsenault responded almost immediately with another goal to put BC up 4-1.
Ally Hall and Shayla Scanlan scored to help the Cardinals within striking distance, but the Eagles continued to score at will. Urbank finished off a first-half hat trick, and Arsenault scored the final of her four first-period goals off a tremendous pass from Urbank, as BC went into halftime with a 9-4 lead.
The second period was more of the same, as the Eagles opened the period on a 10-0 run. Again it was Arsenault who impressed, scoring 10 seconds into the frame, thanks to yet another win in the draw circle. Arguably the biggest reason that BC was so dominant was its proficiency on draw controls. Sam Apuzzo—who only scored once despite leading the nation in goals this season—excelled there, helping the Eagles win 21 of the game’s 26 draw controls. This pronounced advantage in the draw circle led to BC outshooting Louisville, 40-21.
The second period also saw an uptick in physical play from the Cardinals. Eleven Louisville fouls led to three Eagles goals from free-position shots. The notable moment of the 10-goal run was defender Christina Walsh’s first goal of the season. The score put BC up 14-4 and led to teammates mobbing her after the ball hit the net. Apuzzo would score two minutes later with some great footwork for her 71st tally of the season, while Jenn Medjid ripped twine twice and Kent got in on the scoring party. Louisville added two more goals in the final four minutes to slightly lessen the BC lead but it didn’t matter much—the Eagles had already begun celebrating the regular season title on the sidelines.
BC finishes on top of the conference for the second season in a row, and will be heavy favorites going into the ACC Tournament. The Cardinals sit in the basement of the conference, and the respective placements mean that the two teams will meet again this coming Wednesday in Chestnut Hill—the Eagles are hosting this season’s ACC Tournament. After being defeated by UNC in the conference final last season, BC will look for revenge on its home turf, as its quest for a perfect season continues.
Featured Image by Bradley Smart / Heights Editor
