The UVM women’s lacrosse team hasn’t exactly had a picture-perfect start to the season so far  with a 2-8 record.

However, the Cats have held their own and played a lot of close games. Unfortunately, more of them were ultimately disappointing losses. Holy Cross, Siena and conference rival Stony Brook were all very winnable games. 

“If we expect to be a top-level team, we have to compete against the best,” head coach Jen Johnson said.

Their record also doesn’t look as bad if you consider the Catamounts’ very difficult out-of-conference schedule, playing No. 7 ranked Syracuse, and very strong Dartmouth and Boston College teams.

The team has shown a lot of potential and talent.  Two especially bright spots on the roster have been junior Megan MacDonald, who has proven herself to be an all-out playmaker with 22 points, 13 goals and nine assists in just 10 games, and sophomore Samantha Stern, who has recorded three hat tricks in the last four games and 19 on the season.

Both of these girls need to keep it up, as their schedule won’t get any easier from here on out. 

Fortunately, the Catamounts start this final stretch of the season toward conference tournaments with three home games against Binghamton this Saturday, Leymone on Wednesday and California on Sunday. 

“An area of focus for us will be building the confidence of our young team and learning to consistently play up to our expectations throughout the year,” Johnson said.

The real test is the following two games of the season against conference rivals No. 17 ranked Boston University Terriers and the New Hampshire Wildcats.

With five games still remaining, the lacrosse team still has a chance to drastically improve their sub-par record as is it stands and end their season on a high note.