GRANTHAM, PA -- The No. 25 University of Scranton women's lacrosse team dropped its season opener against No. 24 Messiah University on Saturday afternoon, 11-5, at Witmer Family Lacrosse Stadium.
The Basics
- Final Score: No. 24 Messiah - 11, No. 25 Scranton - 5
- Records: No. 24 Messiah (1-0), No. 24 Scranton (0-1)
How it Happened
- After winning the opening draw, Messiah scored on its first possession, taking an early 1-0 lead just 38 seconds into the game.
- It took Scranton just a few minutes to respond, as Eileen Hewitt found the back of the net on a free position attempt with 11:39 on the clock to tie the game at 1-1.
- Messiah retook the lead with 3:35 left in the first period as Grace Pettitt scored to give Messiah a 2-1 advantage. The Falcons added their third goal of the game just 1:52 later, taking a 3-1 lead into the second quarter.
- Scranton's Jillian Lopez got the Royals back within one goal, scoring her first goal of the game on a free position attempt with 8:07 left in the first half.
- Lopez then tied the game 1:01 later with her second goal of the period to even the score at 3-3 with 7:06 left in the second period.
- Senior goalkeeper Eva Guerino kept Scranton in the game during in the first half, making five saves in the second quarter and six in the half as the game went to halftime knotted up at 3-3.
- Messiah went back in front at the 10:53 mark of the third quarter as Hayley Lettinga found the back of the net to make it 4-3 Falcons. It was Lettinga again at the 7:44 mark who made it a 5-3 game with her second goal of the period.
- With 4:13 left in the period, Grace DiDominica connected with Hewitt, who scored her second goal of the game, to bring Scranton back within one goal at 5-4.
- The Falcons added one more goal with just 38 seconds left in the period to extend their lead to 6-4 heading into the final period.
- Messiah scored three times in a two-minute span to extend its advantage to 9-4. The Falcons added a pair of goals in the final five minutes to build a seven-goal lead at 11-4.
- Freshman Allyson Flynn scored her first career goal with just 1:25 left in the game, however Messiah's fourth-quarter surge proved to be too much as Scranton dropped its season opener, 11-5.
Top Performers
Inside the Box Score
- Messiah out shot Scranton 27-20.
- The Falcons won 10 draw controls, while the Royals won eight.
- Messiah had 11 caused turnovers and Scranton had 10.
Up Next
- The Royals are back in action on Saturday, Feb. 21 against No. 6 Franklin & Marshall for their home opener. The game is set to begin at 1 PM at Weiss Field in Scranton.
