ST. CHARLES, Mo. – The No. 14 ranked Regis University women's lacrosse team lost 13-12 to the No. 2 ranked Lindenwood University Lions on a rainy Friday afternoon. This was by far the team's toughest test so far this season, and they proved that they can hang with the nation's top teams.
 
How it Happened: High-powered Lindenwood got things started scoring the first three goals of the game, giving Regis an uphill battle for the rest of the half. Senior Erin Steiner finally put the Rangers on the board with a free-position goal as the clock ticked close to ten minutes left in the first half. The rain continued to fall, and the conditions challenged the players on a level that matched the intensity of the two teams.
 
Steiner, taking a pass from sophomore Sarah Myres, slipped through the defense and scored another goal four minutes later bringing RU within one goal of the Lions 2-3. The home team extended their lead to three goals by the 4:18 mark in the first half but Regis was not finished.
 
Back-to-back goals from redshirt-senior Erin Todd brought the score to 4-5 near the end of the half. LU countered with a goal of their own, but Todd netted her third goal of the half right before the horn sounded and the teams headed into halftime with the Lions ahead by only one goal, 6-5.
 
The Rangers played much better in the second half, preventing LU from jumping out to a major lead, and constantly matching goals with goals. It was junior Rachael Walker who finally knotted the game up 8-8 less than ten minutes into the second half.
 
With the game tied 11-11, Walker broke through again and gave RU their first lead of the game 12-11 at the 7:54 mark in the second half. The teams then battled back and forth for nearly six minutes without anyone scoring. Regis had possession with under three minutes left in the game and called a timeout to draw up a play and calm the nerves.
 
Out of the timeout the Rangers controlled possession and then attacked. Their play worked nearly worked to perfection as Myres found herself wide open on the left side of the field heading towards goal. She took the shot, but the Lions goalkeeper somehow found a way to corral the shot and keep it from going into the goal.
 
With the change in possession it was LU's turn to waste time and attempt to score. With 1:18 left the Lions took a shot from deep and it narrowly snuck into the goal to put the home squad up by one late in the game. LU won the ensuing draw and they passed around the field until time ran out, sealing the victory 13-12 over RU.
 
Freshman Court Huston (L, 4-1) lost for the first time in her career despite playing an unbelievable game between the pipes. She made a career-high 11 saves on the day and gave up 13 goals.
 
Game Notes: Regis took 24 shots on the day but they were outmatched as the Lions had 42. The draw control battle also tilted in favor of LU 21-6, which is only the second time this season the Rangers have found themselves behind in that category at the end of the game. The transition game for RU allowed them to clear the ball out of their defensive zone 22-out-of-27 times. Regis converted on 4-of-7 free-position attempts. Myres led all players with six points on the day scoring twice and handing out four assists. Todd and Steiner (4 GB, 1 CT, 1-1 FPS) had a team-high three goals each, while Walker (2 GB, 2 CT) and junior Jada Bonner (3 GB, 4 DC, 2 CT) each added two goals on the day.
 
Next Up for the Rangers: The No. 14 ranked Rangers will return to Colorado for their regular season finale against the Colorado State University Pueblo ThunderWolves in Pueblo, Colo. on Sunday afternoon.