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Nashville, Tenn. • VU Lacrosse Complex • Attendance: 415 | 14 |
March 15, 2014
NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Led by junior Maggie McCormick's (Eldersburg, Md.) team-high four points and an eight-goal first half, the No. 11/12 Penn State women's lacrosse team opened its 13th and final season in the American Lacrosse Conference with a 14-8 victory against Vanderbilt at the VU Lacrosse Complex Saturday afternoon.
The Nittany Lions improved to 5-3 overall and 1-0 in the ALC with their third straight victory, while the Commodores fell to 3-4 overall and 0-1 in league competition.
Senior attacker Mackenzie Cyr (Westminster, Md.) recorded three points (2g, 1a) as she moved into 13th place on Penn State's career points list with 179. Freshman midfielder Abby Smucker (Bel Air, Md.) matched her season high in points (3), while four Nittany Lions added two-point games.
Penn State out shot Vanderbilt by a 27-15 margin and held advantages in ground balls (16-15), draw controls (14-10) and caused turnovers (10-5). The Nittany Lions finished 9-for-10 on clears, while sophomore Emi Smith (Denver, Colo.) turned aside four shots for her second victory of the season.
In the first half, the Nittany Lions erupted for a pair of four-goal runs en route to an 8-1 halftime advantage. After Coffey opened the scoring 2:17 into the game, the Nittany Lions added three goals in a 4:22 span for the 4-0 lead. Junior Kelly Lechner (Silver Spring, Md.) converted Mackenzie Cyr's pass before the senior attacker netted one of her own. Smucker then scored off a feed from Coffey with 23:04 left in the frame.
Vanderbilt's Kelly Chandler put the Commodores on the board with 17:31 remaining, but Penn State responded with four unanswered tallies. At 14:46, midfielder Kristin Brent (Rockville Centre, N.Y.) gave the Nittany Lions a 5-1 advantage before Cyr, with an assist from sophomore Jenna Mosketti (Fallston, Md.), made it a five-goal game 12 seconds later.
Sophomore midfielder Madison Cyr (Westminster, Md.) scored with 4:08 left in the half before Smucker, who assisted on Cyr's strike, gave the Nittany Lions an 8-1 lead with 2:07 left in the first stanza.
Vanderbilt out scored the Nittany Lions, 7-6, in the second half but still fell to Penn State by a six-goal margin. The Nittany Lions opened the final stanza with three straight tallies, the first coming from Lechner just 31 seconds into the frame. Junior Jess Loizeaux (Mullica Hill, N.J.) made it a 10-1 game with 29:18 left in the half before McCormick added her first of the contest.
After Penn State took an 11-1 lead, the Commodores ended the game on a 7-3 run. Vanderbilt and Penn State exchanged the next four goals, as senior Shannon Lechner (Silver Spring, Md.) and freshman Natalie Schmitt (Malvern, Pa.) each tallied for Penn State. Vanderbilt responded with a 5-0 run, but Mosketti closed out the scoring with 3:48 remaining to account for the 14-8 final.
The Nittany Lions will return to action Sunday, March 23 when they host league foe Michigan at the Penn State Lacrosse Field. Opening draw is set for 1 p.m.