YORK, PA – The #8 York College women's lacrosse team opened their stay in the 2025 NCAA Division III Tournament with a 20-5 win over Plymouth State on a beautiful Sunday afternoon in York.
The Spartans broke the game open in the second quarter as they outscored the Panthers 6-0 in the frame as they took an 11-2 lead after one half of play.
York improves to 17-3 overall while the Panthers see their season come to a close with a mark of 16-4. York has won 11 straight games.
 
How It Happened
• The Spartans got off to a good start after eight days off since their MAC Commonwealth championship match win over Stevenson last Saturday. The Spartans broke the scoring seal with a Gianna Huet goal off a pass from Zoe Kluegel just 43 seconds into the game. Kluegel made it 2-0 just under three minutes later as she scored off a Krista Yarusso pass. The Panthers Sammy Murphy notched a free position goal to get the guests on the board. The two teams traded goals before Sofie Steel netted an unassisted goal and Kluegel finished off a free position shot as York took a 5-2 lead after the first quarter.
• The Spartan defense took control of the game in the second quarter as they locked down the Panthers. York limited the Plymouth State offense to two shots while they forced six turnovers in the quarter. While Spartan defense was holding down the Panthers, the York offense started to get rolling. Kluegel kicked off the second quarter scoring one minute into the period. Sydney Mentzer, Huet, Katie Jeanes, Maddie Ross, and Logan Ward scored in the period as the Spartans took an 11-2 lead to the break.
• York ran their goal streak to nine as Ward scored to open the third quarter as York led 12-2. Plymouth State's Maddie Hunt notched a free position goal two minutes later to halt the Spartan run. York responded by scoring four of the final five goals of the quarter to take a 16-4 lead after 45 minutes of action.
• The Spartans got valuable experience for their reserves in the fourth quarter. Lauren Gillies scored a pair of goals while Juliana Silvernale and Riley Coltenback also scored for York to provide for the final 20-5 Spartan margin of victory.
 
By The Numbers
York out shot the Panthers 42-9 in total shots and 31-8 in shots on goal … York had 12 turnovers while Plymouth State had 23 … York had a 21-13 margin in ground balls … the Spartans went 17-for-29 at the draw … Plymouth State was 2-for-2 in free position shots while York was 1-for-3 … York went 19-for-20 on the clear while the Panthers were 11-for-16 … York had 13 caused turnovers in the game while Plymouth State had eight … five different Panthers scored goals in the game while Maddie Hunt had a goal and assist … Margie Black had 11 saves in her 60 minutes in goal while she also had three ground balls … Elle Moshier had two caused turnovers, an assist and a ground ball for the Panthers … Jenna Stowell had four draw controls, a goal, and a ground ball.
 
Spartan Notes
The Spartans faced Plymouth State for the first time in program history … York is making their 12^th NCAA Tournament appearance and are now 15-11 all-time in the tournament … York is now 9-0 at Kinsley Field in the NCAA Tournament … York is now 6-4 in second round tournament games … Plymouth State is the 18^th different program the Spartans have played in the NCAA Tournament … York improves to 11-1 at Kinsley Field as they have won eight in a row at home … the 20 goals in the win were the most in an NCAA Tournament game in Spartan history, besting the previous best of 17 set against Misericordia in 2019 and again against Johnson and Wales last year … the senior tandem of Zoe Kluegel and Gianna Huet continue to power the Spartan offense … Kluegel had seven points on five goals and two assists while Huet had six points on three goals and three assists … Huet now sits third on the Spartans' all-time scoring list with 216 points on 125 goals and 91 assists while Kluegel is fourth with 210 points on 165 goals and 45 assists … Kluegel is third on the all-time goal scoring list while Huet is eighth … Huet is now third on the career assists list with 91 helpers as she is one short of Devin Hursey in second and five away from tying Celly Arthur for the top spot … Kluegel has scored 12 goals with three assists in her last two games … Kluegel has 15 multi-goal games this year … Huet has 10 multi-assist games this year … Krista Yarusso set a new career-high with five assists in the win … Maddie Ross had four draw controls, four ground balls and one assist in the victory … Leigha Saurbaugh had a career-high four draws while she also had a ground ball for the Spartans … senior Nesiah Bertram had four ground balls and two caused turnovers … Sydney Mentzer continues to be a factor all over the field with three caused turnovers, five ground balls, two draw controls and a goal … grad goalie Bella Garabo improves to 57-18 for her stellar Spartan career.
 
Up Next
The Spartans will take to the road to face William Smith in the third round of the tournament on Saturday, May 17. The game will be played in Middlebury, Vermont and start at 2:30 pm.