YORK, PA – The seventh ranked Washington & Lee women's lacrosse squad scored the final three goals of the game to slip past #14 York College, 9-7, in a non-conference tilt at Kinsley Field in York on a wet Saturday in York.
The Spartans took a lead with 11:51 left in the fourth but the Generals scored three straight to earn the win.
The Spartans fall to 2-5 overall as they have lost three of their last four. The Generals improve to 7-3.
 
How It Happened
• The action was slow going early in the sloppy conditions. The Generals struck first as Julia Thompson scored a man-up goal with 7:38 left in the opening quarter to give W&L a 1-0 lead. Claire Horner stuck for goal number two just 38 seconds later, scoring off a pass from Thompson as the visitors went up 2-0. Emma Marsh concluded the first quarter scoring with a goal with 2:09 left in the quarter as the Generals led 3-0 after 15 minutes of play.
• The second quarter was very low scoring as the conditions continued to be challenging for both teams. Hanna Bishop pushed the W&L lead to 4-0 as she tallied in an unassisted goal midway through the half. The Spartans avoided the first half shutout as Sofie Steel notched her sixth goal of the year on a nifty goal in traffic with 3:11 left in the half.
• The Generals held a 17-10 edge in total shots and a 10-5 margin in ground balls in the first half. W&L goalie Caroline Kranich was outstanding in the opening 30 minutes of the game as she recorded seven saves for the Generals. Both teams had eight turnovers in the first half.
• York came out of the break rolling as they scored three straight goals to tie the game at four. Madison Kurland score a free position goal at the 13:27 mark. Zoe Kluegel followed with a free position goal of her own with 11 minutes left in the quarter. Sydney Mentzer tied the game off a slick pass from Kurland, knotting the score at four with 9:43 remaining in the third. The Generals recaptured the lead five minutes later as Alex Petras notched a man-advantage goal. Bishop closed out the quarter with her 26^th goal of the year with 2:51 showing on the clock.
• The Green and White wasted little time in tying the game again early in the fourth quarter. Mentzer recorded another free position goal 1:21 into the quarter. Mentzer created the Spartan next chance as she fed Krista Yarusso for a shot on the doorstep which she converted for her fourth goal of the year. The Spartans then took their first lead of the day on a man-up goal from Kurland at the 11:51 mark.
• The Generals responded quickly in notching the equalizer as Bishop tied the game on a free position shot 1:11 after Kurland's goal. W&L's Walker McKnight recorded the go-ahead goal at the 6:32 mark for her 16^th goal of the year. Horner closed out the scoring with a man-up goal with 4:38 left, giving the Generals the two-goal win.
 
By the Numbers
The Generals held a 28-20 edge in total shots while York had a 15-13 margin in shots on goal … W&L had an 18-12 advantage in ground balls … The Spartans were 18-for-18 in clears while the Generals were 17-for-19 … York finished the game with 16 turnovers while the Generals had 13 miscues … York caused seven turnovers and W&L had six … the Generals had eight saves to just four for York … the Green and White won the battle of the draws, 12-8.
 
Spartan Notes
York is now 4-2 all-time against the Generals as the teams have split their last four games … all five Spartan losses have come to team ranked in the IWLCA Top 20 as they have losses to #6, #3, #14, #6 and #7 … the Spartans were much better on the draw on Saturday as they won 12 of the 21 contested draws after getting outdrawn 25-9 against Gettysburg on Wednesday … York failed to reach double figures in scoring for the third time in the game as the seven goals tied a season-low (7 vs. Stevens on March 9) … the 9-7 loss is York's second of the year by that score … York is now 1-3 in games decided by two goals or less … the 20 shots in the game were a season-low for the Green and White … York was 3-for-6 in free position goals and are now 14-for-28 for the year … York converted two man-up chances and now have nine man-advantage goals for the year … Madison Kurland and Sydney Mentzer led the way for the Spartans with three points each on a pair of goals and an assist … Kurland chipped in with three draw controls … Mentzer contributed two caused turnovers and a pair of draw controls … Zoe Kluegel, Krista Yarusso, and Sofie Steel scored the other goals for York … defender Sarah Christensen had three ground balls and a pair of caused turnovers … Christina Vendelis had a team-high five draw controls while she also had a pair of ground balls.
 
Up Next
The Spartans return to Kinsley Field on Wednesday afternoon as they host nationally ranked Christopher Newport in a non-conference contest. Game time is set for 4:00 pm.