The last time Boston College lacrosse played Albany was in 2021, when the then-No.13 Eagles dominated the Great Danes 22–12 in BC’s season opener. That same year, BC went on to win its first and only national championship.
Nearly three years later, the squads met again, and this matchup told a similar story. No. 2 BC (2–0) defeated No. 23 Albany (0–2) 15–7 on Wednesday, in Fish Field House after establishing an early lead in the first quarter—one the Eagles never gave up.
The Great Danes attempted to mount a comeback in the second and third quarters, coming as close as two goals to BC’s lead, but the Eagles’ offense reemerged in the fourth quarter to seal the win for the Eagles.
“They’re a really good team,” BC head coach Acacia Walker-Weinstein said. “So, we never thought the fight would be over, and they climbed right back in.”
The Eagles wasted no time proving why they are the No. 2 ranked team in the country. In less than three minutes, BC gained its first lead of the game when Belle Smith notched an unassisted goal to get the scoring started. After the opening score, the Eagles found themselves constantly adding to their lead throughout the first 15 minutes of play.
In the first quarter alone, BC sent six shots into the back of the Great Danes’ net, while BC’s goaltender Shea Dolce recorded four saves, only allowing Albany to put one ball into the back of the net.
The Eagles showed strong chemistry and displayed their depth in the opening quarter, with five different players potting goals.
“I love that it’s an unselfish feel, I think that’s a really important ingredient,” Walker-Weinstein said. “I’m proud of them for sharing the ball.”
At the end of the first quarter, the Eagles had built a five-goal advantage over Albany, but the Great Danes were not ready to back down. Albany turned up the pressure, scoring its second goal of the game with 11:10 left in the first half.
The Great Danes continued to gain traction in the second quarter, as they scored two more goals, tallying their fourth of the game with just 19 seconds left on the clock to cut BC’s lead to four. Albany’s goaltender Grace Cincebox also stepped up her game in the quarter, saving four BC shots for the Great Danes.
Though Albany tried clawing out of its deficit, BC did not let up its lead, and the Eagles led 8–4 by halftime.
But the Great Danes continued to chip away. Less than two minutes into the third quarter, Albany scored its fifth goal of the game, and the Great Danes looked to launch a comeback. Just over 30 seconds later, at the 12:45 mark, a Courtney Rowe score cut BC’s lead to just two goals.
On the opposite end of the field, the Eagles offense stalled in the third quarter, failing to score any goals until just over a minute remained.
“I think we were prepared for that, but I just think—we didn’t shoot very well, we had some careless turnovers—but we were prepared for them to fight back,” Walker-Weinstein said.
At the 1:18 mark, BC regained control of the game when Rachel Clark scored to reestablish a three-goal lead for the Eagles. Then, Kayla Martello followed closely after, and put the Eagles up 10–6 with 20 seconds left on the clock.
“I just had a lot of confidence in our team and I knew we weren’t executing the way we should be, and we just needed to re-focus, lock back in, and I wanted to get some momentum,” Clark said.
The Eagles spent the fourth quarter putting the game away, and tallied five goals in the final 15 minutes. BC’s defense also held its ground as Albany only scored once in the last quarter.
“Some of our defenders had some really great plays and our middies really hung in there,” Walker-Weinstein said. “But they’re a good team, really well coached, and I was proud of our defensive efforts.”
BC’s final goal came with just 12 seconds remaining, as Andrea Reynolds put the finishing touches on BC’s 15–7 win over the Great Danes.
“Our middies did a really good job of digging deep at the end of the game, and I think our shooting started to fall, and our defenders really made some huge plays back there along with Shea,” Walker-Weinstein said.
