The opening round of the NCAA Division III Women’s Lacrosse Championship saw some offensive fireworks and the game of the day took place in Lexington, Va., as Transylvania edged Washington & Jefferson 16-15 on a last-minute goal to win a back-and-forth affair.
Transylvania Rides Late Momentum
In a game that featured six lead changes, Transylvania took momentum down the stretch, scoring three of the last four goals. Charlotte Green scored the game-winner with 56 seconds left off an assist from Diana Bruder to give the Pioneers the victory.
Abbey Peterson led Transylvania with seven points on five goals and two assists and went a perfect 5 of 5 shooting on free position attempts. Bruder had five points (3g, 2a), Mandi Rider had a hat trick and Vianne Koshoffer dished out four assists.
Amanda Effland had five goals and two assists for W&J and Kaitlyn Brown made 15 saves.
Transylvania plays at host Washington and Lee in the Sunday’s second round.
York Wins Defensive Battle
In one of the rare low-scoring games of the day, York controlled St. John Fisher 9-6 to advance to the second round when it will host Wesleyan in a battle of two teams ranked in the Top of the Nike / USA Lacrosse rankings.
York never trailed, thanks in large part to a five-goal run that bridged halftime, but St. John Fisher cut the lead to two goals early in the fourth quarter before Gianna Huet gave the Spartans some breathing room with a goal with 8:30 remaining to close the scoring.
Chloe McDonald led York with three goals and Bella Garabo made eight saves to secure the victory.
Merchant Marine Rallies Past Springfield
Merchant Marine scored eight fourth-quarter goals to break a tie at 11 and defeat Springfield 19-13 in the first round.
Springfield scored the first three goals of the game and led 7-4 late in the second quarter, before Merchant Marine scored the last four goals of the half to take an 8-7 halftime lead.
Jessie Wohner led Merchant Marine with five goals and two assists, including three goals and an assist in the fourth quarter. Jaqui Sheedy and Jenna Turrentine each scored four times. Katie Martel and Jade O’Connor each scored four goals for Springfield.