GRANTHAM, Pa. - Rachel Delate scored or assisted on 16 of Messiah's 21 goals on Wednesday afternoon, setting a new program record for points in a single game with 16 as the Falcons earned a 21-6 victory over the Alvernia Golden Wolves. In addition to her single-game points record, Delate also broke the program's single game assists record with nine in the match.
 
The Falcons held a slim 4-3 lead after eight minutes of play, but Messiah went on a 16-1 run to take a 20-4 lead late in regulation. The Golden Wolves scored two late goals, but Hope Flack tallied as time expired for the final goal in a 21-6 Messiah victory. With the win, Messiah starts the MAC Commonwealth season with a 1-0 record and improves to 8-1 overall on the season.
 
How It Happened
The Falcons and Golden Wolves played a back and forth opening few minutes on Wednesday with each team scoring on their first two possessions to see the score knotted at 2-2 after three minutes of play. Rachel Delate scored the first goal of the game and then assisted on the second to get the Falcons offense going.
 
After a pair of Alvernia goals, Messiah scored consecutive tallies from Emma Lytle and Delate to take a 4-2 lead. The Golden Wolves connected off a shot from Sherrin Smith to make it a one goal game with 6:52 remaining in the opening quarter. Over the next 49 minutes, Alvernia scored just one goal against the 16 tallies for the Falcons.
 
Messiah held a 13-4 lead at the half and quickly got the clock running in the third quarter, cruising to a 20-4 lead with under three minutes to play. Alvernia scored back-to-back goals, but it was not enough as Delate found Hope Flack for the final goal of the game as time expired to give the Falcons a 21-6 victory.
 
Delate's Record Day
Rachel Delate accounted for 16 of Messiah's 21 goals on the afternoon, dishing out a program record nine assists for a single game and scoring seven goals. Delate had her hand in 10 of Messiah's first 11 tallies.
 
Her record-breaking day finished just two points shy of the all-time Division III single game points total of 18. Delate's 16-point performance shattered the previous Messiah women's lacrosse record of 11, that was set by Kara Geiman on Apr. 12, 2008 against Manhattanville.
 
With her assist to Flack in the final seconds, Delate also set the Messiah women's lacrosse single-game assists record. The previous record of eight was set by Christen Beaver on Mar. 30, 1999 against Widener.
 
While Delate finished a goal shy of the program record for goals in a single game, she did set a new career high for tallies in a single game with seven.
 
What's Up Next
The Falcons will head to York this weekend to take on the Spartans in an early season conference game with major postseason implications. The Spartans are the defending MAC Commonwealth Champions and are currently ranked eighth in the country with a 6-2 overall record. The opening draw control is scheduled for 6:00 p.m.