Cortland, NY... Hoping to make a late comeback for the second time in as many days, The College of New Jersey women's lacrosse team saw their hopes dashed as SUNY Cortland limited the Lions to one goal in the second half as the Red Dragons held on for a 9-7 win on Sunday.
 
That win was the 19^th straight for the Red Dragons as they earned a trip to next weekend's NCAA Division III semifinals, while the Lions saw yet another successful season come to a close with a record of 16-4.
 
On Saturday, TCNJ scored the final four goals of the game to slip past seventh-ranked Amherst College, but the second-ranked Red Dragons (20-1) didn't allow the Lions to repeat that performance on Sunday.
 
Cortland held a 7-6 lead at the break and the teams tightened up defensively in the final 30 minutes as they combined for only three goals. TCNJ had numerous chances to tie the game with a pair of free-position shots, but one hit off the post and the other sailed high.
 
The Red Dragons then scored two goals with 2:14 of each other late in the period to extend their lead to 9-6.
 
Not to be deterred, the Lions fought back as senior Kathleen Notos (Pennsauken, NJ/Camden Catholic) scored unassisted with 4:21 making it a two-goal game. Notos then promptly won the ensuing draw control and raced down the field where she directed a shot at the Red Dragon cage that was stopped by goalie Shauna Hutchinson. Cortland followed with a successful clear and maintained possession for the final 3:57 to preserve their lead.
 
In the first half, the Red Dragons scored the game's first three goals in the opening 7:56 before the Lions got onto the scoreboard on a tally by Notos.
 
After Cortland extended their lead to 5-1, TCNJ finished the half strong scoring five of the final seven making it a one-goal difference at the break. Sophomore Jen Garavente (Monroe Twp., NJ/Monroe Twp.) started that stretch for the Lions depositing a free-position shot into an empty Cortland net when Hutchinson was issued a yellow card.
 
The Red Dragons got that goal back 24 seconds later, but TCNJ put together its best offensive surge of the game scoring three times in 1:19. Garavente took advantage of another Cortland player on the sidelines after receiving a card and then set up Leigh Mitchell (Mt. Laurel, NJ/Lenape) for a goal making it 6-4. TCNJ got it to one goal seconds later thanks to a successful free-position shot by Trenna Hill (Syracuse, NY/Lafayette).
 
The Lions came within inches of tying the game with 6:40 showing on the clock, but Jillian Nealon's (Whitehouse Station, NJ/Hunterdon Central) shot bounced off the pipe. The Red Dragons then collected the ground ball and went down the field pushing the gap back to two goals.
 
Garavente sent the Lions into the half on a good note scoring with 13 seconds left on a feed from Mitchell.
 
TCNJ goalie Kelsey Zinck (Burke, VA/James W. Robinson) just missed a career high in saves as she finished with eight saves.
 
The game marked the final time that Notos, Mitchell, and Sara Keating (Montclair, NJ/Montclair) donned a Lion uniform as the three seniors capped their impressive careers. Over the course of the last four years, they have been to the NCAA Tournament four times, including a trip to the semifinals last season, and have captured three New Jersey Athletic Conference titles.
 
Mitchell ranks first in program history in points (398) and assists (223) and also holds single-season record for points (123) and assists (85). Notos, who recorded her third 50-goal season against Cortland, ranks fifth in TCNJ history with 206 goals.