Hartford, Conn. – Senior midfielder Katy Dissinger (Upper Brookville, N.Y.) and sophomore attacker Carolyn Gorajek (Hightstown,N.J.) combined for six goals and sophomore goalkeeper Tara Connolly (Simsbury, Conn.) made 10 saves to lead the visiting Bowdoin College Polar Bears to a 9-6 victory over the previously-undefeated Trinity College Bantams  in the NCAA Division III Women's Lacrosse Championship Quarterfinals this afternoon on Sheppard Field.  Bowdoin, ranked No. 11 in the nation, improves to 17-3 and advances to its first NCAA Semifinals next weekend against the College of New Jersey at Adelphi University on Long Island a 5 p.m. on Saturday.  Trinity, ranked No. 2 in the nation, closes its season at 18-1 with its first loss to the Polar Bears in the last six games between the teams.  Both squads win totals are the most in the history of their respective programs.  Bowdoin was playing in its third NCAA Quarterfinals, while Trinity drops to 0-5 in NCAA Quarters appearances.

"This season exceeded everyone's expectations,"  Trinity Head Coach Kate Livesay said.  "This group definitely raised the bar for our program, but we had many underclassmen who were a part of this.  I am confident we can continue this standard in the future."

Trinity sophomore midfielder Megan Leonhard (Summit, N.J.) opened the scoring on a free position 5:13 into the game, but Bowdoin erupted for four straight goals in a four-minute span and maintained at least a two-goal cushion for the majority of the first half.  Three of the Bowdoin goals during the streak came on free-position shots, including the first by junior attacker Liz Clegg (Hudson, Ohio) at the 22:47 mark and the last by Clegg with 18:49 on the clock.  Leonhard ended the run with an unassisted tally with 17:15 left in the first half, but Dissinger answered less than a minute later to push the Bowdoin lead back up to three at 5-2. 

Neither team scored for nearly 10 minutes, although a Bantam goal by sophomore attacker Hadley Duncan (Rye, N.Y.) was nullified due to a charge call and Connolly made a key save against Trinity senior co-captain midfielder Alisen Urquhart (Redding, Conn.), stopping the shot and picking up the ball on a roll just before it crossed the goal line.  Urquhart intercepted a pass during a Bowdoin clear attempt and raced down the field to score Trinity's third goal with 6:34 remaining before the break, and Leonhard beat Connolly with a nice feed while running from right to left in front of the crease off a pass by junior midfielder Liz Bruno (Andover, Mass.) to cut the lead to 5-4 just before intermission.  Trintiy junior goalie Gina Dinallo (West Hartford, Conn.) made three saves late in the first stanza, after relieving sophomore Olivia Whitney (Danvers, Mass.) following Bowdoin's fifth goal.

Gorajek and junior midfielder Katie Herter (Topsfield, Mass.) scored for Bowdoin and Leonhard notched her fourth and fifth goals of the game over the opening seven minutes of the second half, making the score, 7-6, with 23:13 left to play.  Gorajek completed her hat trick with just under 21 minutes on the clock, while Connolly stymied a close shot by Bruno, and Urquhart and Bantam freshman Shea Kusiak (Longmeadow, Mass.) each saw shot carom off the post over the next 10 minutes.  First-year Alexa Pujol (New Canaan, Conn.)scooped up Kusiak's miss and flipped it into the net, but was ruled in the crease and the goal was taken off the board. 

"Their defense was very strong against us, and their goalkeeper stopped some shots that might have given us some momentum," Livesay said.  "We had talked about the importance of setting the tone early with a good start, but Bowdoin turned that around on us." 

Moments later, Dissinger gave Bowdoin a 9-6 advantage at the 6:43 mark, eluding several Bantam defenders on her way from the top of the arc to the right wing before shooting high past Dinallo.  Connolly stopped Leonhard on a high shot from point-blank range and saved a free-position attempt by Trinity senior co-captain attacker Rachel Romanowsky (Hampstead, N.H.) at the 1:27 mark to help keep the Bantams off the board for the final 23:13 of the game.  Gorajek added an assist to total a team-high four points, while Connolly added three ground balls to her 10 saves.  Bantam first-year Lyndsey Shepard (Hamilton, Mass.) picked up a game-high four ground balls, and Dinallo and Whitney totaled six saves between them.

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