ST. JOSEPH, Mo. – In a tightly contested match, the University of Colorado Colorado Springs women's lacrosse team came up short Sunday afternoon at Missouri Western State University, falling to the Griffons, 11-5.
INSIDE THE MATCHUP
Final: UCCS 5, NWMSU 11
Records: UCCS (0-5, 0-0 RMAC), MWSU (2-2, 0-0 GLVC)
Facility | Location: Craig Field at Spratt Memorial Stadium | St. Joseph, Mo.
All-Time Series: In just their third meeting all-time, UCCS leads the all-time series, 2-1.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Missouri Western State snagged a 3-0 lead in the first nine minutes of action before Allie Schell put the Mountain Lions on the scoreboard with 3:47 left in the opening stanza. Kyer Frederick drove down the attacking lane and connected with Schell on the right baseline. Schell drove in from the right and shot the ball behind her left shoulder for the first UCCS goal. The Griffons answered on the ensuing possession, as Jordon Coulon won the draw and marched down into Mountain Lion territory for the goal. After one quarter of action, the home team held a 5-1 advantage.
- UCCS outscored the Griffons in the second quarter, 3-2. The Mountain Lions scored the first two goals of the quarter within a three-minute span. Schell made a diagonal pass 15 meters out from the goal to Brielle Fannin who slung it in for a goal at 13:23. Three minutes later, Erica Rivera made a cross pass to Ava Goodnature who finished the play with a shot four meters in front of the goal, cutting into MWSU's lead, 5-3. After a Griffons goal at 6:13, the Mountain Lions cut the deficit back to two goals with 4:17 left in the half. Goalkeeper Madison McGriff stopped a shot on goal and moved the ball down the field to Patrick who streaked down the right sideline before dishing the ball to Rivera for the Mountain Lions fourth goal of the game. The Griffons netted one more goal before the end of the half to take a 7-4 lead at intermission.
- The Mountain Lions were held scoreless in the third stanza as Missouri Western State chipped in one goal. Trailing 9-4 in the final stanza, Julia Patrick netted the lone goal of the second half for UCCS on a free-position shot with 7:18 left in regulation. The Griffons sealed the game, scoring the final two goals in the last 4:21, including a goal by Madison Brady as time expired.
STATS FROM THE GAME
- Patrick, Rivera and Schell mirrored each other's point production as all three tallied one goal and one assist.
- Rivera attempted a team high four shots and Schell added three.
- McGriff (0-5) made 11 saves between the posts and picked up a team high seven ground balls.
- Defensively, Anna Markham notched four ground balls and caused one turnover. Kathryn Kossack caused a team high two turnovers as UCCS finished with eight.
- Sam Pruitt and Brady paced the Griffons with four points each. Brady led both teams with 10 shot attempts.
- UCCS cleared 17-of-25 attempts as NMSU made 17-of-22 attempts.
- The Mountain Lions picked up 26 ground balls to the Griffons 16, but the home team outshot UCCS, 32-16 (22-11 shots on goal), and committed eight fewer turnovers (26-18).
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- Schell scored the first goal of the game and her first goal of the season. Also netting her first goal in a Mountain Lions uniform today was Rivera.
- Patrick notched her team-leading ninth goal and has found the back of the net at least once in the last four games.
- Markham's four ground balls marked a season high for her.
UP NEXT
- The Mountain Lions will open their home season on Friday, March 10 against Lewis University at 3 p.m.
SOCIAL
Twitter – @GoMountainLions
Instagram – @gomountainlions
Facebook – GoMountainLions
As a member of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, the University of Colorado Colorado Springs competes in 16 varsity sports in NCAA Division II intercollegiate athletics.
