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UVA Bests W&M, 16-5, in Battle of Nationally Ranked State Lacrosse Teams
Cavs Use 7-0 Run To Close First, Outscore Tribe 5-1 in Last Eight to Put It Away
03/21/06 10:15PM
WILLIAMSBURG - Nikki Lieb’s three tallies paced a Virginia attack that featured eleven different goal scorers, leading the seventh-ranked Cavaliers to a 16-5 victory over No. 11 William and Mary in a match-up of nationally ranked women’s lacrosse teams at soggy Albert-Daly Field Tuesday night.
Blair Weymouth, Kate Breslin and Tyler Leachman each had two goals for Virginia (7-2), which won its fifth-straight in the rivalry and 10th in the last 11 meetings between the state schools. The Cavaliers took advantage of 21 Tribe turnovers, including 14 in the first half, and raced out to a 7-1 halftime lead, then used a 6-1 scoring run and stifling defense to close out the victory.
W&M (4-3), which suffered its first loss at Albert-Daly Field and saw its six-game home winning streak snapped, was led by Jaime Sellers’ (Kennebunk, Maine) two goals, while Emily Vitrano (Cockeysville, Md.) added a goal and an assist. Sophomore goalkeeper Amanda Roth (Bethesda, Md.) kept the Cavaliers at bay early with six first-half saves and finished with 10 overall. Kristen Wong (Richmond, Va.) picked up a game-high eight ground balls and added two caused turnovers and a draw control.
In the 41st meeting between the rivals, it was W&M, who for the second-straight year, jumped out to an early lead. After Roth stopped a shot by Virginia’s Kim Connors, the Tribe quickly cleared to the other end, eventually gaining an eight-meter attempt for Sellers. The sophomore whipped a shot past Ginger Miles 3:07 in to give W&M a 1-0, but that would be the Tribe’s lone eight-meter attempt of the contest and lone goal of the first half.
Roth did her best to hold the narrow lead, stopping four more Virginia shots in the opening eight minutes, as the Cavaliers continued to gain possession off Tribe turnovers. But, after Roth corralled Lieb’s straight-on blast from nine yards, Leachman scooped up an errant outlet attempt by Roth, and the All-American attacker went to straight to goal to tie the contest at 1-1 with 21:19 remaining in the first.
The squads battled through an even six minutes with Miles picking up one of her four saves, but after Virginia once again gained possession off a turnover, Breslin found the net with 15:28 remaining to ignite the Cavalier attack. Jess Wasilewski controlled the ensuing draw and just 28 seconds later Whitaker Hagerman gave Virginia a 3-1 advantage. W&M was able to control the resulting reset, but Claire Bordley caused another Tribe turnover while led to Breslin’s second goal on a Hagerman assist at the 13:50 mark, giving Virginia a 4-1 lead.
Virginia’s lead grew to 5-1 on Wasilewski’s goal with 10:58 on the clock, before Lieb banged home an eight-meter shot with 6:20 that pushed the lead to 6-1. Lieb lassoed the resulting draw, and despite another Roth save, Leachman found the net with 4:28 remaining before the break to give the Cavaliers the six-goal halftime edge.
Although Virginia only held a 13-11 advantage in draw controls, the Cavaliers capitalized on two key wins early in the second half to continue to pull away. Leachman took the opening draw, which led to Lieb’s unassisted goal just 35 seconds into the period, and after another Leachman draw control the Virginia lead grew to 9-1 on Lieb’s third, just 1:30 into the second.
Virginia gained possession again off the resulting draw, but after Wong forced a turnover and picked up a ground ball, Sellers broke through on a pass from Vitrano with 27:33 remaining. But, Megan O’Malley had the answer for Virginia, tallying her lone goal two minutes later to push the lead to 9-2.
After one of Roth’s four second-half saves, W&M senior Morgan Lang (Westfield, N.J.) capitalized at the other end, firing a laser past Miles with 22:16 remaining to cut the deficit to six, and after Wong controlled the next draw, senior Colleen Dalon (Moorestown, N.J.) converted a free-position goal less than a minute later to trim the deficit to 10-4. Jaime Fitzgerald (Jenkintown, Pa.) won the battle for the ensuing draw, and the Tribe looked to continue to build some offensive momentum, but Miles recorded a key stop on a shot by Lang, and after a quick clear, Leachman and Weymouth hooked up to give Virginia an 11-4 cushion.
From there, the Virginia attack slowed the pace of play and the Cavalier defense settled in at the other end. Miles recorded another big stop on a shot by Sellers, and after Virginia patiently worked some more time off the clock, Weymouth converted an eight-meter attempt with 7:49 that left little doubt about the outcome. The Cavaliers tacked on two more before Vitrano netted the Tribe’s final goal with 4:17 remaining, before Virginia added two more in the final minute.
Lang added three ground balls and two caused turnovers, and junior Anne Harrington (Alexandria, Va.) also picked up three ground balls. Jen Holden led Virginia with six ground balls, while Leachman finished with five draw controls and three ground balls.
Box Score
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