Box Score Philadelphia, Pa. – The UMBC women's lacrosse team scored four straight goals in the second quarter to break open a 5-5 deadlock and went on to defeat the La Salle Explorers,14-7, Saturday afternoon at McCarthy Stadium,
Junior
Grace Bruce scored a game-high five goals for the second straight contest and now leads the Retrievers with 21 tallies on the season. Junior attacker
Kolby Weedon (7 draw controls) added her fourth hat trick of the season and handed out two assists while junior midfielder
Katana Nelson contributed a pair of markers. Senior
Isabella Fontana made four stops in goal to pick up her fourth win.
UMBC (4-2, 0-0 America East) dominated the opening quarter as they took a 5-2 advantage. Bruce put the visitors on the board just thirty-eight seconds into the match as Weedon located the attacker in front of the net.
La Salle (2-3, 0-0 A-10) got even at the 13:08 mark on an unassisted tally by Maddie Henderson but Nelson struck just 12 seconds later for the Black & Gold to make it 2-1.
Alana Lathan (3 goals) knotted the contest on a free position marker with 10:24 left in the first but the Retrievers scored three straight goals to finish the stanza. Junior midfielder
Ria Lagdameo ignited the run with an unassisted tally and then Weedon (woman up) and Bruce and Bruce (free position) followed suite.
The hosts went on a 3-0 run over the first 4:27 of the second quarter to tie the game at 5-5. Katie Johnson set up the first two goals as she found Henderson and Lathan to bring the Explorers within one. Mackenzie Click would get the equalizer off an assist by Melissa Hewitt with 10:33 left in the half.
The Retrievers, however, rattled off four straight goals to take a 9-5 advantage at intermission. Bruce opened the burst with back-to-back tallies, including the go-ahead winner off an assist from junior attacker
Alexis Abe at the 6:06 mark. She added a free position shot with 2:48 left in the stanza for her fourth goal of the half. Sophomore midfielder
Libby Staples made it 8-5 at the 2:17 mark and Nelson found the back of the next with just nine ticks showing on the scoreboard.
The Retrievers extended their halftime lead to 10-5 as Weedon took a feed from
Ella Killian at the 12:09 mark.
La Salle scored the final two goals of the third quarter to close within 10-7 as Latham (woman up) and Claudia Steinmetz (free position) hit the target.
UMBC erased any doubt as they dominated the fourth quarter by blanking the hosts, 4-0. Abe, Weedon, Ellis, and Bruce all contributed goals.
The Retrievers held a 28-17 shot advantage and won 18-of-25 draws.
The Dawgs will host Beltway rival Towson on Wednesday at 4:00 p.m.
