PHOTO GALLERY
LATROBE, Pa. (March 29) - A strong start helped Saint Vincent down Westminster 17-9 in the Ohio River Lacrosse Conference opener for both teams.
Saint Vincent raced out to an 8-0 lead less than 10 minutes into the contest on their way to victory. Reigning ORLC Offensive Player of the Week
Maggie Nelson led the charge with 5 goals and 4 assists in the victory. Senior
Hannah Carroll tallied 2 goals and 4 assists, while sophomore
Kennedy Ains recorded her first career hat trick with 3 goals.
Nelson and Carroll combined for five goals to put SVC up 8-0 with 20:39 left in the opening half of play. The Titans would answer with three goals to cut the Bearcats advantage to 8-3 at the 15:12 mark. The Bearcats would use a 5-1 run to end the first half with a 13-4 advantage. Ains recorded two goals during that period, while
Katie Stallings,
Julianne Rosa and
Rachel Belles each found the back of the net as well.
The Bearcats opened the second half with a goal from Nelson, which was assisted by Carroll. Senior
Sarah Wallerstedt would then take a pass from
LingEr Williams and score to make it 15-4 with 19:20 left to play. The visiting Titans would score five straight goals over the next 15 minutes to make it 15-9 at the 3:36 mark. Nelson and Wallerstedt would finish the game with another goal apiece to conclude the game's scoring.
Sophomore
Courtney Kloos also chipped in a goal and assist in the contest, while junior
Libby Volna recorded her first collegiate point with an assist.
Belles, Wallerstedt and Carroll all recorded five ground balls in the victory. Wallerstedt also paced the Bearcats with a game-high five draw controls. Sophomore goalkeeper
Maria Franey made six saves during 60 minutes of action in net.
Saint Vincent held a 18-9 advantage in draw controls and out-shot Westminster by a 34-21 margin.
The Bearcats move to 1-0 in ORLC play and 4-2 overall. Meanwhile, Westminster drops to 0-1 after falling in the program's inaugural game.
SVC will now hit the road for three straight, taking on Thomas More College in Kentucky on Saturday, April 1. Start time is slated for 1 p.m.
