The weather conditions dictated an early end to Yale's game at Holy Cross Wednesday afternoon, but not before enough lacrosse was played for the Bulldogs to extend their winning streak to five. No. 15 Yale held a 13-6 edge on the Crusaders with 9:48 to play in the second half when the officials decided the ongoing snowstorm and dangerous conditions at the Hart Astroturf field mandated calling the game.

The game began in a pouring rain and Yale (9-3, 2-1 Ivy) fell behind early. Holy Cross (7-4, 2-0 Patriot) only scored three goals in last year's game, but the Crusaders reached that total in the first 17 minutes of this year's game and held a 3-2 lead. Yale's tallies came when sophomore defenseman Jenn Warden picked up a ground ball off a Holy Cross turnover and fed sophomore midfielder Taylor Fragapane at the 19:43 mark; less than a minute later junior attacker Meredith Callahan found junior midfielder Lauren Taylor in front of the net.

Warden tied the game at three with 10:05 to play in the first half, and after that the Bulldogs took control. Senior midfielder Lara Melniker dodged through the defense to give Yale the lead a minute after Warden's goal. Warden then got the draw control and passed to Taylor, who fed Melniker for another goal 14 seconds after her first.

Holy Cross got back within one on a free-position goal by Kristine Corkum, but junior midfielder Kat Peetz freed herself up with a spin move right in front of the goal to make it 7-4 and Taylor scored a free-position goal after that.

The Crusaders did tack on a free-position goal by Cara O'Sullivan two seconds before halftime, but Yale quickly re-established control as the second half got underway. The Bulldogs reeled off the first four goals –- two for Taylor, one for Warden and one for Peetz.

By that point the rain had turned into a driving snowstorm, and footing on the artificial turf was getting treacherous as the snow accumulated. After Holy Cross pulled within five on a goal by Kristine Corkum with 12:45 to play, time was called and players from the Holy Cross bench came out onto the field to clear away snow from the creases and lines with their sticks.

Warden found freshman attacker Jessica Sturgill wide-open for a goal with 11:53 to play, and Fragapane extended the lead 14 seconds later. She now has four goals in the last three games.

With players starting to slip all over the field, junior goalkeeper Ellen Cameron came up with a save on Patricia Sutton with 10:45 left and shortly after that the officials whistled the game over. NCAA rules dictate that as long as 80 percent (48 minutes) of the game has been played it is an official game.

Yale finished a perfect 10-for-10 on clear attempts and out shot the Crusaders 28-9. That was a season-low shot total for a Bulldog opponent. Senior defenseman Lindsay Levin picked up five ground balls and had three caused turnovers to lead the way defensively.

Even with the abbreviated game Taylor and Warden both had enough time to extend their point-scoring streaks to 20 and 17 games respectively. Taylor pushed her nation-leading goal total to 47, also establishing a new career high for herself in that category. This was the eighth time in 12 games this season that she has scored four or more goals.

The Bulldogs are back at Johnson Field to host a crucial Ivy League game vs. No. 9 Princeton on Saturday (2:00 p.m.). The game is scheduled to be broadcast by WYBC 1340 AM.

2007-04-04