A dominant defensive effort in the first half paved the way for No. 7 Stony Brook in a 10-8 victory at No. 14 Towson on Sunday afternoon.

Towson had to work for every offensive opportunity against the Seawolves’ zone defense, and when they did get off a shot, Stony Brook goalie Kameron Halsall was up to the challenge. Halsall, who did not play in Friday’s win over UMBC, made four saves in each half to earn the victory.

Towson led 2-1 with 17:18 to play in the opening half, but did not score again until the second half as Stony Brook took control 6-2 at the break. Jaden Hampel and Kailyn Hart each scored twice in the half.

Towson scored the first three goals of the second half and cut the margin to one-goal twice in the second half, but three straight goals from Kaeli Huff, Hampel and Ally Kennedy gave Stony Brook a 10-6 lead with over 10 minutes to play.

Stony Brook did not score again, but Towson’s comeback ran out of time with Kerri Thornton scoring the game’s final goal with 43 seconds remaining.

Hampel’s three goals led Stony Brook (4-2). Blair Pearre led Towson (4-1) with three goals, all of them coming in the second half.

Elon Beats James Madison for the First Time Ever

Elon held James Madison scoreless for the first 24 minutes of the game, opening up a 5-0 lead, and then held on for a 6-5 victory over the No. 13 Dukes. It was Elon’s first win ever over its Colonial Athletic Association rival in eight tries and ended JMU’s 18-game CAA winning streak.

pile alert! @ElonWLAX celebrates its first victory ever over JMU. Elon hangs on to upset the Dukes 6-5 despite 14 saves from JMU goalie Molly Dougherty. Paulina DiFatta with eight saves for the Phoenix. pic.twitter.com/xqfLZUqXwi

— US Lacrosse Magazine (@USLacrosseMag) March 7, 2021

Nine first half turnovers helped limit JMU to just six shots in the opening half and the Phoenix took advantage. Cate Mackel’s first half hat trick helped Elon took a 5-0 lead before Rachel Matey final got the Dukes on the board with 5:40 left in the first half. If not for nine first half saves by JMU’s Molly Dougherty, it could have been worse.

JMU scored twice in the opening five minutes of the second half before Elon’s Sara Bouwman scored with 20:44 left to end the Dukes three-goal run.

JMU tacked on two more and trailed by just a goal with 9:27 remaining after Daria Lucchesi’s goal, but could not get the equalizer. In the final 10 minutes, Elon goalie Paulia DiFatta made a pair of saves and JMU turned it over three times, once as the possession clock expired with under two minutes to play.

DiFatta finished with eight saves to earn the win for Elon (2-0, 1-0 CAA) while Mackel’s hat trick paced the offense.

Dougherty made 14 saves for JMU (2-1, 0-1 CAA). Matey and Kacey Knobloch each had a goal and an assist.

Watson Powers UConn Upset of No. 16 Massachusetts

Sydney Watson started the scoring with an empty-netter against the ride and closed it with the game-winner in overtime as Connecticut upset No. 16 Massachusetts 12-11.

Watson had a game-high six goals in the victory and the dynamic midfielder has registered 21 goals in helping the Huskies to a 3-1 start.

UMass took its biggest lead of the game at 8-4 late in the first half only to see UConn score six straight goals, four of them by Watson, to turn the tide.

UMass never regained the lead, but had tied it 11-11 and had a golden opportunity in the final minute of regulation, but UConn goalie Landyn White came up with a huge save to send the game to overtime.

in her veins. Landyn White with the huge save for @UConnWLAX. Huskies headed to OT against UMass. pic.twitter.com/sUSObTLXMl

— US Lacrosse Magazine (@USLacrosseMag) March 7, 2021

White made another save in overtime which set up Watson’s game-winner. White made 13 saves in the victory.

Kelly Marr led UMass (1-2) with four goals.
 

Michigan Completes Weekend Sweep of No. 18 Rutgers

After a rough February, Michigan appears to be back on track following a weekend sweep of No. 18 Rutgers.

The Wolverines, ranked No. 9 in the preseason Nike/US Lacrosse Division I rankings, opened the season with a stunning 15-12 loss to Ohio State and then were swept by Maryland to open the season 0-3.

Michigan welcomed an upstart Rutgers team to Ann Arbor this weekend and won a back-and-forth affair on Friday, 12-11, on Molly Garrett’s overtime goal.

On Sunday, no drama needed. The Wolverines (2-3) never trailed and snuffed out Rutgers’ second-half comeback attempt to register a 12-9 victory.

Caitlin Muir engineered the offense with five goals, but also added a pair of goals, including this spin move to create a window which she capitalized on to close out the scoring.

Give her a window and she’ll find it. Caitlin Muir (2g, 5a) puts the finishing touch on a weekend sweep for @UMichWLAX over Rutgers. Wolverines win 12-9. pic.twitter.com/CxCPeXiiJB

— US Lacrosse Magazine (@USLacrosseMag) March 7, 2021

Caroline Davis and Nadine Stewart added hat tricks for Michigan and Kaitlyn Mead scored twice, including a goal that ended a three-goal Rutgers run after the Scarlet Knights had pulled to within 8-7.

Taralyn Naslonski (2g, 2a) led Rutgers (3-3) offense with four points. Marin Hartshorn and Ashley Moynahan also had two goals.

USC Doubles Up UC Davis

Sophia Donovan scored four goals as No. 19 USC evened its record at 2-2 with a 20-10 victory over UC Davis on Sunday afternoon. Donovan's third goal capped a four-goal run for the Trojans that broke an early 2-2 tie.

Sophia Donovan during work behind the cage.
A first-half trick and @USCTrojansLax leads UD Davis 11-5 at the break in the final game of the day. pic.twitter.com/6TnxcAo45X

— US Lacrosse Magazine (@USLacrosseMag) March 8, 2021

Kelsey Huff (3g) and Izzy McMahon (1g, 3a) also had big days and Maddie McDaniel added two goals and 12 draw controls. Riley Hertford made 14 saves while allowing just eight goals to earn the win in cage for USC.

Notable

It was a milestone day in Vanderbilt’s 17-14 win over High Point. Gabby Fornia tied Vanderbilt’s single game (7) and career (88) records for assists while High Point’s Abby Hormes broke the school’s career goals record. Hormes had three goals in the game, giving her 151 for her career.

Drexel is a perfect 5-0 after routing Villanova 17-7 on Sunday. Lucy Schneidereith had five goals for the Dragons and Colleen Grady had four goals and four assists.

Coastal Carolina also improved to 5-0 as freshman Monica Manley had four goals and an assist in a 12-7 win over Davidson, snapping the Wildcats' four-game winning streak.

Johns Hopkins overcame a 6-1 deficit late in the first half, beating Ohio State 10-9 on Shelby Harrison's free position goal with 7.1 seconds remaining in the game.

Boston University scored nine straight goals to rally from a six-goal second-half deficit to beat Vermont 12-10. Senior Makenzie Irvine scored the final four goals of the run, setting a career-high in goals for the Terriers.

Nike/US Lacrosse Women’s Top 20 Scoreboard

No. 7 Stony Brook 10, No. 14 Towson 8
Elon 6, No. 13 James Madison 5
Connecticut 12, Massachusetts 11 (OT)
Michigan 12, No. 18 Rutgers 9
No. 19 USC 20, UC Davis 10

No. 9 Penn State at No. 4 Northwestern, PPD

Other Scores

Boston University 12, Vermont 10
Central Michigan 17, Detroit Mercy 4
Cincinnati 15, Kent State 5
Coastal Carolina 12, Davidson 7
Denver 22, Arizona State 12
Drexel 17, Villanova 7
Johns Hopkins 10, Ohio State 9
Robert Morris 16, Butler 10
Siena 17, Canisius 8
Vanderbilt 17, High Point 14

Bucknell at Navy, PPD