Lexington, Ky. - A thrilling comeback attempt fell just short for the Transylvania Women's Lacrosse Team as the Pioneers opened the 2021 season with a 14-13 loss to the Centre College Colonels at Pat Deacon Stadium on Tuesday night.

Ysa Leon led the Pioneers with four goals in her Transylvania debut. The freshman also tallied a ground ball, and two caused Turnovers.

The senior duo of Salem Carlow and Courtney Pontious powered the Transylvania offense throughout the night. The duo each scored three goals and tallied six draw controls, with Carlow also adding two assists in the losing effort.

The Colonels controlled the ball throughout the first half, building a seven-goal lead with just over four minutes remaining in the opening period. However, the Pioneers came storming back with goals from Leon and Mandi Rider to cut Centre's lead to 10-5 at the break.

Transylvania's impressive run continued into the second half, with Pontious and Carlow each scoring in the first minute of play, cutting the Colonels lead to just three goals.

With Centre's defense reeling, Pontius added two more scoring strikes within a 30-second span to cut the Colonel's lead to just one at 10-9.
The Colonels responded with three-straight goals to extend their lead back out to four goals with 4:34 remaining in the game.

The resilient Pioneers mounted one final comeback attempt, scoring three goals within the final four minutes of play, including a strike from Lindy Walker to cut the final deficit to14-13 in favor of the rival Colonels.

Abi Waldron corralled 12 saves over 60 minutes of action in the net on Tuesday. The sophomore also collected four ground balls and caused two turnovers in the loss.

Transylvania will return to play on Friday, February 26, when the Pioneers travel to Sewanee, Tennessee, to match up with the Sewanee Tigers. The opening draw is set for 4:00 p.m. at Puett Field.  

For more on Transylvania women's lacrosse, follow @TransyWLax on Twitter