ITHACA, N.Y. -- A 5-0 blitz to close out the first quarter gave Cornell women's lacrosse the jolt it needed to defeat the Columbia Lions, 13-5, on Saturday afternoon from Schoellkopf Field. Cornell improved to 4-1 and 2-0 in Ivy League play, while Columbia dropped to 2-3 and 0-2 in conference action. The win by the Big Red also gives the team an undefeated 2-0 start in conference play for the fourth time in the last five seasons.

Five Big Red athletes had multi-point outings in the win for Cornell, headlined by two goals and two assists from senior Maggie Pons. Senior captain Bridget Babcock also put together a strong performance with two goals, one assist, and a team-high five ground balls. Kylie Gelabert (two goals), Dillyn Patten (two goals), and Sophie Ward (two goals) rounded out the top performers in a game that saw a combined 43 shots on goal from both sides. Junior Ellie Horner was also a brick wall in the cage for Cornell, securing a season-high 14 saves and scooping up two ground balls to earn her fourth win of the year in between the pipes for the red and white.

Columbia Cecelia Messner led the charge for the Lions with her third hat trick of the year, and Sophie Zachara had the other two goals in the loss, which extends the team's conference losing streak to 21 consecutive games. 

The opening four minutes and change saw Columbia pushing it early while holding the Big Red shotless. Cornell found the back of the net a minute later off a dodge and ripper shot from Patten that glided into the bottom right corner, giving Cornell the early advantage. Columbia will soon take the momentum right back about halfway through the opening quarter on consecutive goals by Zachara and Messner to put Cornell behind going into a media timeout. The break jolted the Big Red back to life, as a clutch free position shot save by Horner allowed the Big Red to kill off a yellow card from Ward. That would immediately turn into dividends, as a fresh off the bench Ella Wilmot found a cutting Babcock for a ripper that snuck past Ava Kimche to draw things at two each. Babcock's goal sparked the Big Red offense, as five different attackers found the back of the net to give Cornell a 7-2 lead after the opening 15 minutes. One of those goals was a highlight reel by Gelabert, grabbing a Pons feed and using a slick behind-the-back shot to tuck it home in the top left corner. 

Columbia put the pressure on Horner early in the second, ripping off five shots over the first three minutes. But the junior stood tall between the pipes, making three saves while the other two sailed high and wide. Horner's third save in the sequence immediately turned into a run-out opportunity for Cornell, as Babcock scooped up a ground ball and took it the distance, bouncing a shot past for her second of the contest to keep the scoring run from the opening quarter intact and cushion the Big Red's lead to six. That goal began the first stalemate of the game for either side, with 7:41 ticking off the clock without a goal and a combined nine shots in that time frame. Columbia got back into the scoring column with 4:01 to go on a free position goal by Messner to cut the deficit down to five. But the final four minutes of the half trickled down quickly with three more combined saves between Horner and Kimche to keep things intact at 8-3 heading into halftime. 

The third quarter opened with Horner continuing to do work in the cage for the Big Red, securing three more saves over the first five minutes. With the scoring drought for both sides nearing ten minutes, there was a feeling that a goal would soon be on the horizon. And Pons delivered for the Big Red, finding the back of the net on a free position shot to push Cornell's lead back to six. Ward followed suit a little later for the Big Red offense, using a Gelabert screen to whip around to the right and beat her defender for her second and final goal on the day to give the Big Red its largest lead of the afternoon at seven. Messner would answer about two minutes later with another goal, looking to provide a spark for the Columbia offense. The Big Red had the last laugh of the quarter from Annie Parker, who ran past two defenders and found the back of the net for the first time in her Cornell career to make the score 11-4 after three. 

Another stalemate hit both teams to open the fourth with nearly nine minutes going off the clock without a goal scored. That would change with 6:01 left, as a yellow card by Columbia's Natalia Raiszadeh allowed Cornell to pick up a woman-up goal off a feed from Pons to Gelabert to make it 12-4 Big Red. But after another goal by the Lions with 3:39 to go, Mia DiChiara put a bow on the win for the Big Red by converting a free position goal for her second of the year to clinch the 13-5 victory and the 13th straight home win for the Big Red over the Lions.

BIG RED NOTABLES

• With the 13-5 win, Cornell secures its 27th straight victory over Columbia. That streak is now the longest for over one opponent in program and Ivy League history.
• Cornell scored ten or more goals for the 12th consecutive matchup against the Lions and held Columbia to ten goals or less for the sixth straight battle. 
• Junior Annie Parker netted her first career goal for the Big Red in the third quarter. She now joins Ellie Bergin, Dillyn Patten, and Ella Wilmot as athletes who have scored their first career goals this season.
• Ellie Horner secured double-digit saves (14) for the first time this season and the 11th time in her career at Cornell.
• Junior Josie Vogel and senior Maggie Pons each extended their point streaks to 20 consecutive games dating back to last season. 

UP NEXT
Cornell will hit the road for the first time in March when it heads to Vestal to battle in-state rival Binghamton from the Bearcats Sports Complex on Tuesday, March 12 at 4 p.m. Game action will be available on ESPN Plus.