It’s been an up-and-down season for the Georgetown women’s lacrosse team (5-4, 1-1 Big East), which has experienced huge triumphs over top-ranked teams (North Carolina, Penn) as well as losses that shouldn’t have been (Johns Hopkins, Loyola).

Through all the ups and downs that the women’s lacrosse team has faced this year, it has focused on maintaining level-headedness about upcoming matches. Despite the roller coaster, the Hoyas are hoping for smoother sailing when they take on UConn at home Friday.

The last time out for the Blue and Gray was just that, as the team coasted to a 17-11 victory over American Tuesday night. However, whether Georgetown’s play earlier this week is a meaningful step in the right direction or just a midseason fluke remains to be seen.

“I think the biggest key takeaway [from the win against American] is that when we actually put our minds to something, we can accomplish it,” Georgetown Head Coach Ricky Fried said. “It’s just a matter of staying engaged for the entire 60 minutes to make sure we’re playing the way we’re capable of playing.”

One player who has played to her potential over the last couple of games is junior midfielder Kelsi Bozel. The Maryland native stepped up big toward the end of the Loyola game in winning draws to give her side a much-needed possession, and she also tallied four goals in the Hoyas’ most recent outing against AU.

Bozel, who noted that she’s found more confidence in recent matches, expressed her team’s disappointment after the Loyola heartbreaker.

“It was definitely really tough,” she said. “We knew that if we fixed little things [in] our playing, then we could have won, and we can do better going forward.”

Coach Fried, meanwhile, felt as if his team’s reaction to the Loyola loss manifested itself for both better and worse in Monday’s game.

“I think in the first five to 10 minutes of the game, we acted like we were just going to walk on the field and win because we were better. We stepped up the focus and scored nine goals in 10-and-a-half minutes, and then we kind of went back to feeling like we were pretty good,” Fried said. “And I think the biggest piece is just us focusing on what we’re doing the entire time.”

With conference play starting in earnest with Friday’s match at home against UConn, the Hoyas will have little margin of error .

Fried pointed out that, because Georgetown has either won outright or earned a share of 11 of the last 12 Big East titles, conference opponents are sure to circle the Hoyas as a focal point of the season.

Bozel stated that she and her teammates were well aware that their foes will be gunning for them.

“[UConn is] going to go hard because it’s [the] Big East, and we always have a target [on our backs],” she said.

Still, Coach Fried said that if his team just focuses on fundamentals — specifically, on limiting turnovers — they’ll be able to rise to the challenge when they take on the scrappy and offensively potent Huskies.

“I think going with our strengths … we want to stay and play fast, because we’re athletic,” Fried said. “I think they’re going to have a hard time running with our numbers, so we really want to wear them down and force them to make plays.”

Every time the Hoyas have won a game this season, another W has immediately followed. So if history is any indication, Fried’s squad should be ready to play Friday against UConn. Faceoff is set for 4 p.m. at MultiSport Facility.