March 4, 2017 - Concordia-Chicago's first season of women's lacrosse was one in which a young team took more than its share of punishment on its way to an 0-17 finish. But if today's second-season opener is any indication, the Cougars are ready to reverse fortunes and accumulate some wins. Concordia-Chicago came back on two different occasions to tie the game today, the final time with 1:12 remaining, but the Rams of Cornell College scored with 58 seconds left to take a 10-9 victory in Mount Vernon, Iowa.

It took less than five minutes from the start for CUC to grab a lead when Anna Kellar converted a pass from Sydney Fuller. However, Cornell answered with five consecutive goals in a span of 11 minutes and threatened to run away with the game. The Cougars fought back as Sonja Sorensen made it a 5-2 game with 3:18 remaining in the half. Then, with just one second remaining, CUC caught a break as some pressure around the Rams' goal resulted in Cornell putting the ball in their own net. The own goal saw CUC trail by just a 5-3 score at the break.

The Cougars carried the play for the first part of the second half. Seven minutes in, Margaret Doane struck for the first of her three goals on the day. Six minutes later, Sorensen netted her second of the day as the team's fourth straight goal produced the first deadlock of the day at 5-5. 

Twice more, the Rams looked to regain control, but the Cougars would not let them out of their sights. Cornell regained the lead two minutes after Sorensen's tally and then added two more for an 8-5 lead with under nine minutes left. Doane's second goal cut the deficit to two, but Cornell answered 35 seconds later to restore the lead to there.

A penalty against the Rams kick-started the Cougars' final rally. Doane completed her hat trick on the man-up situation, Fuller, last year's leading scorer, then scored her first to make it a 9-8 game, and Kellar's second of the day drew the Cougars even with 1:12 remaining. Bugt it took just 14 seconds for Cornell's Sydney Cooper to produce the game-winner and spoil a valiant effort by CUC.

Cornell fired 36 shots on the day to Concordia-Chicago's 22. CUC freshman goalie Krystal Phillips had a solid debut, making 17 saves.

The Cougars will travel to Angola, IN on Tuesday to play Trine University.