Following a weekend of great optimism by coaches and players alike, the Columbia women’s lacrosse team will look to gain its second victory of the season at home against Wagner on Thursday, and its first Ivy League victory in a road contest against Cornell this Sunday.

After losing a nail-biter to Monmouth last Friday, 10-9, and handily defeating Lafayette, 19-9, on Sunday, the team is hoping to improve on the strengths they saw in those two games.

“The coach definitely saw our loss [against Monmouth] as a learning experience,” said sophomore attacker Brittany Smith. “She was very optimistic.”

Aided by an exciting freshman class that has brought a lot of talent and speed to the team thus far, the Light Blue will look this weekend to continue on its current path of success.

Sophomore attacker Frances Callaghan mentioned freshman attacker Gabrielle Geronimos as someone who will have “a big impact” on offense. For her part, Geronimos has already proved her worth, scoring two goals in each game, against Monmouth on Friday and Lafayette on Sunday.

Judging by last season’s outcome, when the Lions easily beat Wagner 16-7, Thursday’s game against the Seahawks will probably be one of the easier games this season.
Battling against Cornell, however, which still has its 2006 Ivy League Women’s Lacrosse title fresh in mind, will be a different story.

The Big Red, armed with two first-team All-Ivy picks in addition to five four-year starters, will be a formidable foe for the Lions. Columbia’s team is relatively young, with six freshmen, five sophomores, and six juniors on the roster. Last year, however, Cornell only won five games, one of which was against Columbia, 12-8.

The Lions will also be playing without one of their star midfielders, junior Rachael Ryan, who tore her ACL last week. While the loss will definitely present a challenge for the team this week and in the upcoming season, Ryan’s teammates are all looking to try and follow her examples of hard work and dedication.

“It will be a matter for the whole team getting together,” said sophomore midfielder Clare Smith, to help fill the void left by Ryan’s absence.

Following this weekend’s success, the team is looking forward to bolstering its reputation, especially in the Ivy League, where it was winless last year. The team is very positive about its chances of chalking up some wins in the Ancient Eight this year, especially against Yale, Harvard, and Brown, who some Columbians have identified as the Ivy League teams to beat this year.