May 4, 2002

BERKELEY, Calif. - Sophomore Patience Baldwin (Baltimore, Md. / Vermont Academy) scored four goals and first-year player Melissa Holecheck (Hurlock, Md. / Sts. Peter & Paul HS) added three, yet it was not enough as Cal posted a 15-11 win over the University of Denver in the semifinals of the Mountain Pacific Lacrosse League playoffs Saturday afternoon. Denver (6-10) will face Saint Mary's (Calif.) in Sunday's third-place game after the Gaels fell to Stanford by a 14-11 score.

Baldwin's hat trick was her eighth of the season to bring her team-leading goal total to 38; that is the fourth-highest single-season total in Pioneer history, and Baldwin has now found the net in seven straight games. Holecheck netted her third hat trick of the season and brought her goal-scoring streak to an amazing 12 games.

Cal (11-6) recorded its second-highest goal total of the season in advancing to the MPLL Final against Stanford. The Bears were led by Julianne Wu and Halsey Monger, who each had three goals and an assist.

The first half saw three lead changes, four ties and a deadlocked 9-9 score at the end of the first 30 minutes. Emily Edwards got the scoring started just 43 seconds into the game. Holecheck gave Denver one of four first-half ties 20 seconds later on a nice assist from junior Mariana Spry (Nashua, N.H. / Nashua HS). With 13:25 remaining in the first half, the score was tied yet again at 6-6 until first-year attacker Tanya Fuchs (Bay Shore, N.Y. / Bay Shore HS) scored the first of three straight Pioneer goals that would ultimately give Denver the 9-6 lead with 5:34 left to play. But Laura Kado and Wu each notched a goal in the last five minutes before Monger would net her first goal of the match with one second left in the half.

Baldwin scored her fourth goal of the day for the Pioneers just 3:37 into the second stanza to give the Denver its fourth lead of the game. Monger answered back two minutes later with her second of three goals for the Bears, only to be answered right back on Spry's second goal of the day. It seemed as if the back-and-forth-scoring barrage would last the entire game, with the team who had the last possession winning it. But two of Denver's key defenders, senior Megan Bader (Aurora, Colo. / Eaglecrest HS) and first-year Beth Cordova (Littleton, Colo. / Arapahoe HS) were ejected after each accumulating two yellow cards and the Bears defensive pressure tightened. Cal goalkeeper Eden Coelho rebounded in the second half with 10 of her 15 saves, and Cal's offense went on to score four unanswered goals in the game's final 23:16.

Senior goalkeeper Sarah Hazard (Owings Mills, Md. / Maryvale Prep) made 19 saves for the Pioneers.

"Give their goalie credit; she is very good, but we weren't very smart with the ball in the second half," said head coach Abby Burbank. "We were inconsistent, and losing two defensive starters hurt us. We were inconsistent. Our attack was strong at one point, but then there was a stretch where our defense was strong and our attack weak. Cal was successful on their fastbreaks, and we didn't capitalize on our attacks."

DENVER WOMEN'S LACROSSE
at Berkeley, Calif. (Memorial Stadium)
California 15, DENVER 11

             1  2  -  FDenver (6-10)  9  2  -  11Cal (11-6)     9  6  -  15

Goals: DEN - Baldwin 4, Holecheck 3, Spry 2, Fuchs, Gerl; CAL - Wu 3, Monger 3, O'Mara 2, Edwards 2, Wheatley 2, Queisser, Kado, Liu.
Assists: DEN - Cook 2, Baldwin, Spry; CAL - Preble 2, Wu, Monger, O'Mara.
Goalkeeping: DEN - Hazard (60 mins., 15 GA, 19 Svs.); CAL - Coelho (60 mins., 11 GA, 15 Svs.).
Shots: DEN 35, CAL 37. Ground Balls: DEN 25, CAL 16. Caused Turnovers: DEN 11, CAL 15. Turnovers: DEN 11, CAL 13. Draws Controlled: DEN 15, CAL 14. Fouls: DEN 24, CAL 10.