The Gators are on a collision course with the nation’s top team.
They gave themselves reason for optimism with their performance Saturday as that crash approaches.
No. 5 Florida (14-2 4-0 American Lacrosse Conference) took control early and didn’t look back as it won its 10th straight game, defeating No. 17 Vanderbilt (7-6, 1-4 ALC), 17-5, at Donald R. Dizney Stadium.
It was the second win for UF by more than 10 goals against a ranked opponent this season, as it routed then 10th-ranked Dartmouth 20-4 in Gainesville on March 20.
The complete performance was just what coach Amanda O’Leary wanted to see from her team in its last game before it travels to Evanston, Ill., to face top-ranked, undefeated Northwestern on Saturday.
“Offensively, I thought they ran through their plays,” O’Leary said. “I think Vanderbilt is a really good defensive team, and offensively we did a nice job of containing them.”
After Commodores attacker Carly Linthicum scored to tie the game at the 26:31 mark of the first half, the Gators dominated possession and finished the half on an 8-0 run.
Florida won eight of the 11 first-half draw controls and Vanderbilt midfielder Ally Carey, who entered the week leading the conference with five draw controls per game, was held to just one in the opening 30 minutes.
“Shannon (Gilroy) did a really nice job (taking the draw),” O’Leary said. “Ally Carey is one of the best draw specialists in the country, if not the best, and I thought Shannon certainly held her own.”
The Gators benefitted from early hat tricks from both Gilroy and junior attacker Kitty Cullen, who gave the Gators the lead two and a half minutes into the game when she scored unassisted.
After Linthicum’s goal tied the game less than a minute later, Gilroy put the Gators up for good 33 seconds later on a free-position shot.
Cullen scored another unassisted goal at 25:13 to give UF a 3-1 lead, and junior midfielder Brittany Dashiell followed that up by assisting on two consecutive Gilroy goals. Cullen then scored to put Florida up 6-1, completing a hat trick of her own.
Dashiell then tied a UF record as she brought her assist total to four, dishing off to junior attacker Caroline Chesterman on two more unanswered scores.
Chesterman’s second goal at the 6:57 mark of the first half put Florida ahead 8-1. In 2011, the Gators scored just eight goals in the entire game as they defeated the Commodores 8-7 in Nashville.
Cullen, who finished with a game-high five goals, said the win will give the Gators a great deal of momentum as they prepare for their showdown with the Wildcats to end the regular season.
“Everybody is going to be so pumped,” Cullen said. “Everyday at practice we are going to be coming out so hard. We have to be ready for this game. They are going to come out physical and it’s going to be a competition.”
Florida junior attacker Kitty Cullen drives toward goal against Detroit on Feb. 26. Cullen returned from a concussion and scored a team-high five goals in the Gators’ 17-5 win against Vanderbilt on Saturday.
