SALINAS, Puerto Rico – Ohio Wesleyan University (5-1) pulled away with a dominant first quarter and never looked back, defeating Saint Joseph's College (1-2), 15-8, in non-conference women's lacrosse action at Albergue Olympic TC on Wednesday morning in the Puerto Rico Classic.
The Battling Bishops built a 6-2 lead after the opening quarter and maintained control the rest of the way despite a balanced offensive effort from the Monks. Junior Taylor Dumond (Minisink, N.Y.) paced Saint Joseph's with five goals, while senior Sophia Burton (Minisink, N.Y.) added two goals and an assist.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
Ohio Wesleyan struck quickly with a goal less than two minutes into the contest, but Saint Joseph's answered moments later when senior Sophia Burton (Minisink, N.Y.) converted off a feed from senior Celia Melanson (Waterford, Maine) to open the scoring for the Monks.
The Battling Bishops then seized momentum with a five-goal run over the next six minutes to open a 6-1 advantage. Junior Taylor Dumond (Minisink, N.Y.) halted the surge with a goal off a pass from freshman Savannah Knight (Sanford, Maine) late in the period to make it 6-2 after one quarter.
Saint Joseph's chipped away in the second quarter. Sophomore Ella Highbarger (Kennebunk, Maine) scored early in the frame and Dumond added her second goal of the day midway through the quarter after a pass from sophomore Kiley Webber (Freeport, Maine), trimming the deficit to 7-4. Ohio Wesleyan added two late goals to take a 9-4 lead into halftime.
Dumond opened the second half with a tally just 30 seconds into the third quarter, but the Battling Bishops responded with a 4-1 run over the remainder of the period to stretch the lead to 13-6.
The Monks added two goals in the final quarter—Dumond scoring off an assist from junior Dinah Wadleigh (Augusta, Maine) and Burton finishing a feed from Dumond—but Ohio Wesleyan sealed the victory with two additional tallies down the stretch.
STATS OF THE GAME:
Ohio Wesleyan finished with a 40-25 advantage in shots and held a 15-10 edge in draw controls, while also posting a slight 25-22 margin in ground balls. Saint Joseph's matched the Battling Bishops with 19 turnovers and stayed close in the clearing game, going 18-for-25 compared to Ohio Wesleyan's 18-for-24 mark.
THE KEEPERS:
- Senior Alexis Eldridge (Effingham, N.H.) started in goal for Saint Joseph's and made two saves in the opening quarter.
- Junior Julia Price (Newbury, Mass.) played the final 45 minutes and finished with nine saves.
- Morgan Leeper earned the win for Ohio Wesleyan with 10 saves.
LEADERS – SAINT JOSEPH'S:
LEADERS – OHIO WESLEYAN:
- Lila Hall – 4 goals
- Sam Frary – 3 goals
- Emma Reynolds – 3 goals
- Jules Kyle – 2 goals
HISTORICALLY SPEAKING:
Wednesday's meeting marked the first-ever contest between the Battling Bishops and the Monks.
NEXT!
Saint Joseph's continues play at the Puerto Rico Classic tomorrow morning when the Monks face Dickinson College at 10:00 AM in Salinas, Puerto Rico.
