Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 5/7/23
From Press Release
Tournament champions once again! The No. 14 University of Pennsylvania women’s lacrosse team entertained the fans on Sunday afternoon at Dunning-Cohen Champions Field in Penn Park, downing second-seeded Yale in overtime of the Ivy League Tournament finals, 15-14.
It is the fourth Ivy League Tournament title in program history and the first since 2016, all of which are under head coach Karin Corbett.
Quaker Notemeal
*The victory marked the 13th win for the Quakers all-time in the Ivy League Tournament, tying the conference record.
*Following the game, Maria Themelis was named the Most Outstanding Player and a part of the All-Tournament team. She was joined on the All-Tournament team with Niki Miles, Anna Brandt, Izzy Rohr (Episcopal Academy), and Kelly Van Hoesen.
*Themelis had an incredible game, posting a career- and game-high six goals, the second most in Ivy League Tournament history for a single game. She only needed seven shots, all of which were on target.
*Miles chipped in five points including a hat trick of goals, as she brings her season total to 57, one shy of tying the single-season program record. She remains the only Quaker to score in every game this season, as she extends her scoring streak to 18 games.
*Erika Chung, who had six points in the semifinals, added three more on Sunday with a goal and two assists. Both of her assists were on the game-tying and game-winning goals.
*When Penn was trailing by two midway through the fourth quarter and needed a spark, Bella Kehoe made her first appearance since mid-April, connecting on back-to-back goals to tie the game up at 13-13.
*The Quaker defense caused 11 turnovers in the game including a team-high three by Sophie Davis. Miles, Rohr (1GB), and Cumiskey each added two.
*Back in goal, Van Hoesen made five saves in almost 63 minutes of works, earning her 13th win of the season.
How It Happened
Simply magic down the stretch for the Quakers. A back-and-forth battle through much of the game with neither team having more than a two-goal advantage came down to the final plays.
With 3:30 left in regulation, Yale broke the 13-13 tie to take a one-goal lead. A little over a minute later, Erika Chung found Themelis to equal the game back up for the final two minutes.
Penn took its final timeout to lay out the plans, but it was the Bulldogs that won the ensuing draw. As time ticked off the clock, the Bulldogs’ leading goal scorer for the season, Jenna Collignon, ripped off a shot in an overloaded fan, clashing it off the crossbar where Kaitlyn Cumiskey scooped up the miss and headed the other way.
A good clear with 10 seconds remaining, Chung wrapped around the goal and looked to dump over the top for a quick stick finish by a slashing Quaker as time expired, but the Bulldog keeper picked off the pass to send the game to extra time.
An unfortunate start to overtime saw Yale win the draw on a golden-goal scenario. However, the Quaker defense had different ideas. Holding strong inside the eight meter, the backline closed in on a diving Collignon down the middle. Aly Feeley, from the backside, checked her stick to knock the ball loose and Grace Fujinaga took it the other way.
With just 11 seconds left in the first part of overtime, Chung had to ball on the back right side of the goal. With patience, she waited for Brandt to make the curl around the defense, catching a threaded pass in front of the crease for the quick-stick finish and punching the Quakers’ ticket to the NCAA Championship.
Up Next
With the victory, the Quakers earned the Ivy League’s automatic bid to the NCAA Championship for the 16th time in program history. Penn will find out who it’ll play in the first round on Sunday night during the NCAA Selection Show. The show will air on ESPNU at 9 p.m.
