SCRANTON, PA – The University of Scranton women's lacrosse team soundly defeated Susquehanna University 16-6 in the Landmark Conference Semifinals on Thursday afternoon at Weiss Field in Scranton.

The Basics

• Final Score: Scranton – 16, Susquehanna – 6
• Records: Scranton (13-5, 9-0 Landmark), Susquehanna (9-10, 5-4 Landmark)
• The Royals will play in their ninth consecutive championship game as they look to win for the third straight season for the first time in program history.

How it Happened

• Graduate student Erin Reich opened the scoring with an unassisted goal just 25 seconds into the game.
• At the 9:20 mark of the first quarter, senior Grace Lane made it 2-0 on a free position goal.
• Sophomore Jillian Lopez made it 3-0 with her first goal of the day at the 3:38 mark, and she scored again with just four seconds left in the quarter to extend the lead to 4-0.
• In goal, junior Eva Guerino made a pair of saves in the quarter to keep the River Hawks off the board.
• Lopez began the scoring in the second quarter with her third goal of the afternoon with 12:54 to go in the period, and Lane found the back of the net 43 seconds later to make it 6-0 Royals. 
• Freshman Natalie Paul extended the lead to 7-0 with her first career playoff goal with 10:20 left in the second quarter, and senior Shannon DiDominica scored her first of the day to make it 8-0 with 6:52 to go in the half.
• Shannon DiDominica scored again 2:07 later to give Scranton a 9-0 lead, and junior Jessica McCabe took a pass from senior Catherine McGlynn and scored with just 33 seconds left in the half.
• Freshman Grace DiDominica opened the scoring in the second half with her first career playoff goal, although Susquehanna scored its first goal of the game less than four minutes later to cut the lead to 11-1.
• Scranton then scored two more goals, one from Lopez and the other senior Molly McCarren to take a 13-1 lead before Susquehanna scored one more time to cut it 13-2.
• The River Hawks opened the scoring with a goal 1:13 into the fourth, but freshman Nora Ryan responded with her first career playoff goal 2:47 later to extend Scranton's lead back to 11 goals.
• Susquehanna scored a pair of goals in the middle part of the fourth quarter before McCarren scored another goal to make it 15-5.
• Just 2:12 after the McCarren goal, Susquehanna scored its sixth and final goal of the contest.
• Shannon DiDominica completed the hat trick with her third goal of the game at the 1:23 mark of the fourth as Scranton defeated the River Hawks, 16-6.

Top Performers

• Lane led the Royals with five points on two goals and three assists.
• Lopez paced the game with her four goals.
• Shannon DiDominica scored three goals and one assist.

Inside the Box Score

• Scranton outshot Susquehanna 34 to 17.
• The River Hawks won 13 draw controls while the Royals won 12
• Scranton tallied 10 caused turnovers and Susquehanna had one.

Up Next

• The women's lacrosse team will be hosting the Landmark Conference Championship Game against Catholic University on Saturday at 1 PM at Weiss Field in Scranton.