Box Score
Lake Lytal, FL — Facing yet another top 20 squad during the school's spring break in central Florida, the Messiah College women's lacrosse team dropped a hard-fought battle to William Smith College Thursday afternoon by a 20-16 score.
Playing without junior and starting goalie Jen Venter, Messiah (1-3) poured in a season-high 16 scores off a season-high 27 shots, but simply could not slow down the 18th-ranked Herons enough to capture a win. William Smith (2-0) charted 32 shots on goal for the game, a stat that helped offset a 23 to 15 advantage in total draw controls by the Falcons.
"We had the chance to watch William Smith play a few days before we played them which helped us mentally prepare for this competition," said Heather Greer, Messiah head coach. "After working on our attack all week it was fun to see the team come together and make some pretty things happen offensively. They worked together as one unit, which helped us score an impressive number of times."
Greer's squad kept things close for much of the first half, exchanging scores to trail by only a 9-7 count at the intermission. William Smith captured its largest lead of the first half in taking a 5-1 lead in the first nine minutes, but Messiah responded with scores from senior Bethany Moskevitz and junior Jackie Dando.
It would be the first of five goals on the afternoon from Dando, as the 5-2 attack added an incredible four scores in the final 11 minutes of the game.
Two of those scores came during a 4-0 Messiah run at the tail end of the contest, as the Falcons pulled within a 19-16 deficit before allowing a meaningless goal to the Herons with just nine seconds on the game clock.
"Everyone was telling me that we officially 'have Jackie back' because she really turned it on in this game for us," Greer said. "Even though she only stands about 5 feet tall, she looked big out on that field today."
Freshman Kara Geiman added five goals as well for Greer's team, while senior Jessica Van Hook scored four times. Senior Kirstyn Wheeler scooped six ground balls to lead the Falcons' defensive efforts, while causing a team-leading three turnovers as well.
Freshman Morgan Scott manned the cage for Greer's team for the entirety of the game, registering 10 saves in her first collegiate appearance.
"Morgan Scott stepped up to fill some big shoes as Jen Venter was out with an injury," Greer said. "Her vocal leadership was essential to our team's chemistry and our low-D unit. In the last 10 minutes of the game we found a spark, got some energy in our legs and rallied back with a four-goal push. Even though it wasn't enough to get the win, we fought hard through the final buzzer and I walked off the field very proud to be this team's coach."
Messiah will return home from the Sunshine state only to play another top 20 team next, as the squad will host #20 Dickinson College next Wednesday. Game time is set for 5 p.m.
