The Georgetown men’s and women’s lacrosse teams found mixed results over the past week. The men’s team stayed undefeated in road matchups as they dominated Fairfield 19-6 on March 9, but the No. 17 women’s team fell just short in a tight 8-7 loss against No. 8 Penn. The men move to 6-1 on the year, while the women fall to 5-2.

In the men’s win, which was on the heels of a 12-goal routing of Furman (2-5) the week before, the program produced its largest offensive output in nearly two decades. Junior attack Jake Carraway had a career day, putting up his largest point total as a Hoya with four goals and five assists for nine total points. Not far behind him was senior attack Daniel Bucaro, who had seven points on five goals and two assists. Senior midfielder Lucas Wittenberg contributed a goal and two assists, while freshman attack Dylan Watson tacked on two goals as well.

The excitement for Bucaro and Wittenberg did not finish after the final whistle blew, as both seniors were selected in the Major League Lacrosse draft that same evening. Bucaro was selected ninth overall by the Denver Outlaws, the highest-selected Hoya in the MLL draft since 2005. Wittenberg went to the Dallas Rattlers with the 48th overall pick.

Georgetown was equally dominant on the defensive end, causing 13 turnovers over the course of the game. Sophomore goalie Owen McElroy allowed six goals and made six saves, while freshman goalie Chris Brandau posted a clean sheet in the final quarter of play. No Fairfield player scored more than a single goal.

The game was never close. Georgetown scored the first six goals of the game, and it wasn’t until nearly five minutes into the second quarter that Fairfield got on the board. By halftime, the Hoyas were up 10-2, and Carraway and Bucaro had each already scored a hat trick.

The start of the second half may have been the lone bright spot for the Stags, as they opened the third quarter with two consecutive goals in the first two minutes to bring the deficit to 10-4 the Hoyas. This bright spot, however, was brief. Georgetown ended the game on a 9-2 run, and the scoreboard read 19-6 when the final horn sounded.

Following a tough schedule to start the year, the men’s team has cruised in their past three games, winning by at least eight goals each time. Next Saturday, the team, now ranked No. 18/16 in the nation, returns to the Hilltop where they’ll face a gritty opponent in Drexel, who just took down No. 11 Villanova, in their final game before Big East conference play begins March 23.

While the men didn’t face much of a challenge, Georgetown’s women’s team faced a formidable foe at Penn on Saturday. Georgetown put up a tough fight outshooting Penn 30-17 and securing eight draw controls to Penn’s four. Senior midfielder Francesca Whitehurst led the Hoyas with three goals and three draw controls. She was followed by senior attack Morgan Ryan, who netted two goals of her own. Junior midfielder Natalia Lynch hauled in four draw controls to go with her lone goal, and senior attack Taylor Gebhardt put up a goal and an assist.

Georgetown, however, came up short on the scoreboard at the end of the day. Their game plan failed to capitalize on free position shots. The Hoyas got nine chances but they converted only two of them.

The Hoya defense was strong throughout the game. Disciplined play meant that Penn only had one free position shot, which was stonewalled by senior goalie Haelle Chomo. Georgetown also won the ground ball battle 18-12.

Whitehurst opened the scoring, but the Quakers responded quickly with three goals of their own. The teams traded goals, and Georgetown followed with two straight to tie the game at four with a little over 12 minutes left in the half. A goal from Lynch just two minutes later put the Hoyas up 5-4 entering halftime.

Penn tied the game on the first possession of the second frame. This goal was followed by over 10 scoreless minutes as both defenses held strong. The Quakers broke the drought to take back the lead, but Whitehurst took matters into her own hands. She secured the draw, coasted down the field and found the back of the net to even things up once more. A goal apiece from both offenses set the game tied at seven halfway through the second half.

At this point, both defenses stepped up once more, and it would be nearly 10 more minutes until Penn broke the draw to take what would prove to be the decisive lead. Despite a solid scoring chance in the game’s waning seconds, Georgetown came up just short.

Although a loss, Georgetown’s strong performance against a tough team showcased a few bright spots for the Blue and Gray. In fact, the Hoyas moved up in the women’s college lacrosse standings, from No. 21 to No.17, despite their defeat on Saturday. Unfortunately for the women’s squad, the road only gets harder next week, as they travel to No. 1 Boston College for a Saturday game.