Figure It Out & Go: Marquette 17, Cincinnati 10

It took a minute — okay, it took 17 of them — but Marquette women’s lacrosse finally got things in gear against Cincinnati on Sunday on their way to a 17-10 victory over the Bearcats. Marquette is now 2-0 on the year and they have won five straight against Cincinnati and all seven of the meetings in Milwaukee.

When Ella Mautz scored while Marquette was killing off a penalty in the middle of the first quarter, that pulled the Golden Eagles out in front of Cincinnati, 2-1. That seemed like a good sign for how things were going to go, even if it was a little slow going to that point of things.

However, a failed clearance turned into one Cincinnati goal…. and another turnover turned into another UC goal…. and a draw control by the Bearcats turned into another goal 53 seconds later….. and a green card with 71 seconds left meant the Golden Eagles had to spend most of the rest of the quarter killing off time while down a woman. Add it all up, and it’s 4-2 Cincinnati heading into the second period.

But as they say, no plan survives first contact with the enemy. Look no further for proof of that than what Marquette did once they had a chance to reorganize in between the first two periods of the game. First quarter had shots 8-7 in favor of MU, shots on goal even at five each, and turnovers even at six each.

The second quarter? Shots favored Marquette 12-2, shots on goal was 8-0 Marquette, and turnovers went 7 for Cincinnati and just four for Marquette. The result of the statistical tip in the game? Dani Serrano’s goal at the 8:12 mark that tied the game at four busted the dam wide open, and by the time the halftime horn sounded, Marquette had outscored Cincinnati 7-0 in the quarter and was leading 9-4 at intermission. Five different women contributed goals in the frame, three different women combined for four assists on the five goals that MU didn’t get off free position attempts, and the Golden Eagles were firmly in control of the game.

Cincy scored first in the second half, and then it was all MU the rest of the way in the third. Another six goals in the final 10 minutes of the quarter turned the game into a rout, and MU was up 15-5 with 15 minutes to go. The Bearcats were able to turn off the running clock at the 12 minute mark, but Hanna Bodner kicked it back in with 8:46 to play. By the time UC got it back off again with under five minutes left, they didn’t have time to make a real dent, even if they outscored Marquette 4-1 in those final five minutes.

Tess Osburn and Hanna Bodner led the way with four goals each as the only Marquette players with a hat trick in this one, while Osburn gets the advantage in points for the day with one assist. Ella Mautz and Sarah Beth Burns both scored a pair of goals, while Riley Jenkins led MU with a pair of helpers. Bodner was tearing it up in general, adding a team high three ground balls and three draw controls, while Burns led the Golden Eagles in draws with four. Four Marquette players recorded at least two caused turnovers here, led by three from Sofia Santana.

Marquette’s timeshare in net continued for a second game with Mikayla Yang starting and Jillian Howell coming on at halftime. Yang let in four goals — all in the first quarter — while making three saves, while Howell let in six — four in the final five minutes — while stopping three shots. I would imagine that this isn’t the last time we see these two split time.

Highlights, courtesy of GoMarquette.com and ESPN+:

Up Next: A nice relaxing one game week. Marquette will return to action on Friday, February 13, when they host Central Michigan. First draw is scheduled for 5pm Central, and ESPN+ will have the streaming broadcast. The Chippewas started out their season by attempting just seven shots — only 2 in the second half — in a 25-0 loss to #25 Notre Dame.

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