Marquette (9-6, 3-3 Big East) fell behind early in the second quarter on Saturday in the nation’s capital versus the Hoyas of Georgetown (9-6, 4-1 Big East). The Golden Eagles fought back but ultimately fell short, losing 14-13. Marquette needs UConn to lose its next game against Georgetown next Saturday to qualify for the Big East Tournament.
Game Trends
Georgetown and Marquette were two evenly matched teams. The Hoyas had 26 shot attempts, 22 of which were on goal. The Golden Eagles matched with 27 shots, 21 on goal. Marquette won the turnover battle 19 to 16 and grabbed three more ground balls than Georgetown. The difference in the game was the faceoff circle. The Hoyas won 17 draw controls to Marquette’s 11.
Game Flow
Both defenses started the game strong, forcing double the number of turnovers as goals in the first period. Junior attacker Tess Osburn scored both of the Golden Eagles’ goals in the frame.
The second was the most lopsided quarter of the game. Georgetown took a 3-2 lead on a Maley Starr goal with 13:46 to play in the period. From there, the Hoyas scored four straight goals to open a commanding 7-2 lead.
After the Hoyas’ big run, Marquette responded with an extended run of their own. Sophomore attacker CJ Meehan calmed the Georgetown storm with an unassisted goal with 5:27 left in the second. Then, Osburn scored back-to-back goals at the end of the second and start of the third period. Finally, Meehan capped the run with her second goal of the game off an assist from Osburn to make it 7-6 with 12:58 in the third.
The teams went back and forth in the third and fourth quarters until the Hoyas gained a 14-10 lead with under two minutes to play.
Marquette fought until the final whistle. First, it was Osburn scoring with 1:54 left to cut it to 3. Then, Bireley scored her first goal of the game to cut it to 2 with 1:24. Osburn scored her sixth goal of the game to cut the deficit to 1 with 43 seconds left.
Georgetown sealed the victory with a crucial draw control by Lucy Nace with 40 seconds left, allowing the Hoyas to maintain possession and run the clock out. Ultimately, dominance in the draw circle was the difference in the Hoyas’ win.
Standout Performers
The Georgetown defense put all its focus on the Big East’s leading goal scorer in Bireley. The senior attacker scored a goal and had an assist on six shots. Bireley made an impact elsewhere, grabbing three ground balls, two draw controls and causing one turnover.
With Bireley getting all the Hoyas’ attention, Osburn was left with room to operate. She scored a career-high six goals on as many shots while assisting Bireley and winning a ground ball and draw control. Meehan also had a game herself, scoring two goals on two shots and contributing an assist. Senior goalkeeper Bryanna Nixon saved eight shots.
Up Next
The Golden Eagles (9-6, 3-3 Big East) travel to Michigan in the regular season finale to take on non-conference opponent Eastern Michigan (7-7, 3-2 MAC). The game is at 11 a.m. CST on Friday, April 25th.
This story was written by Max Mullin. He can be reached at maxwell.mullin@marquette.edu or on Twitter/X @MullinMax.