It’s hard to top sunny California as a Spring Break destination. But this week, the California women’s lacrosse team is trying – in Central New York.

The Golden Bears faced Syracuse, which won, 17-9, in the middle of a four-game arctic set Tuesday. After thrashing LeMoyne on Sunday, 17-6, and losing to SU, Cal faces Colgate and Villanova in Hamilton before heading back to the West Coast with only tanning-bed color to boast.

‘We’ve been lucky enough, because Syracuse has been a great host,’ Cal head coach Jill Malko said. ‘We practiced in the Carrier Dome on Saturday and Monday. That was huge for us, especially because our other option, plan B, was the snow.’

The only non-California Mountain Pacific Conference opponents Cal faces are Denver and Oregon. Eight of its 19 games are in other states, and its non-conference schedule includes six top 20 teams. Tuesday’s meeting was the first ever for SU and Cal.

‘Obviously if you can get a game against a top 10 team, you’re going to do that,’ Malko said. ‘We’ve gone three years trying to avoid the weather up here, and it was time. I was looking to come upstate.’

Cal, like SU, started its women’s lacrosse program in 1998, but the West Coast isn’t exactly a women’s lacrosse hotbed. There are no top 20 teams west of Chicago.

‘Being a newer program, being on the West Coast, it’s been harder to get legitimacy,’ Malko said. ‘I really am thankful to Lisa. She’s been out to California and she’s willing to play us. Not a lot of coaches in the top 10 are willing to do that. I think she understands the growth of this game.’

Back at the Dome

At least one California women’s lacrosse player welcomed the Spring Break trip to Central New York.

Senior Colleen O’Mara, of Camillus, returned to the Dome for the first time since her senior year sectional championship soccer game. O’Mara and Syracuse sophomore Meghan O’Connell played lacrosse together at West Genesee high school. ‘It was great to be back home,’ O’Mara said. ‘I was glad to see Meghan do well.’

O’Connell had two goals and one assist while O’Mara led her team in points with two goals and three assists. O’Mara was a senior leader for West Genesee when O’Connell joined the varsity team as a sophomore.

‘She guided me and showed me how to play lacrosse,’ O’Connell. ‘She was a solid, talented player. She was very well-rounded.’

O’Mara was recruited by SU early in her high school career, but she never seriously considered staying in Syracuse. She wanted to travel away from home.

O’Mara’s family and friends made it to the game as well as one of her former lacrosse coaches at West Genesee. O’Mara and O’Connell help out at the West Genesee girls’ lacrosse camp every summer. O’Mara has attended since she was 8 years old and has taught at it for five years.

Don’t call it luck

With just more than 20 minutes on the clock in the first half, junior Monica Joines got one of the weirdest goals of her career.

Joines gave Syracuse a 7-3 lead when she shot the ball off California goalie Hilary Lynch’s stick and it popped up over her head into the net.

‘Let’s not capitalize on that in the newspaper,’ Joines said.

Joines had a career-high five goals. Senior Leigh-Ann Zimmer also had five, one away from her career high.

‘Let’s be honest here,’ Joines said. ‘The one just over the goalie’s stick, I don’t even know what happened. So let’s just chalk it down to four.’

Said Zimmer: ‘I thought it was beautiful.’

Published on March 23, 2004 at 12:00 pm