Lee bolted to an early 8-1 lead and then held off a late charge from Belmont Abbey to record a 17-11 home victory Saturday afternoon.
Caleigh Kenna was the scoring star after she recorded a career-high six goals on just seven shots. The Florida sophomore's first two goals were part of that opening run when she scored unassisted late in the first quarter and then from the free position arc to open the second quarter.
She added two big goals in the third quarter, when Belmont Abbey closed the gap to 12-10, and two more in the fourth. She entered Saturday's play having found the net just three times this season but now finds herself fourth on the team with nine goals.
"This is a big win for us. We got off to a hot start and then they battled back but we made some adjustments and played a variety of defensive sets to keep them off balanced," said Lee head coach Derrel Martin. "Kenna was fantastic today and scored six goals on seven shots so that was a huge lift for us. Britt (Brittney White) was great in the draw control as usual and that helped us control possession. We got positive play up and down the lineup and Caliegh Smith gave us a lift off the bench in goal with three saves and only conceding four goals."
Shayna Ryan and Megan Trout also contributed hat tricks for the Lady Flames, while Hannah Vecsey and Brittney White scored two goals apiece.
After Lee bolted to that 8-1 lead, Belmont Abbey got back into the game on the stick of Riley D'Andrea. The New York junior scored three in a row during a 2:31 stretch of the second quarter on her way to a five-goal game. Trout scored in the final minute to keep the Lady Flames in front at halftime 10-7.
The teams traded goals to begin the third quarter, with Belmont Abbey's Olivia Carlino scoring with 6:06 showing to pull the Crusaders within 12-10.
But Ryan, Kenna and Trout scored in succession on free position shots, and then Kenna added two more goals to make it a 17-10 game with 7:18 remaining. The Lady Flames defense held Belmont Abbey to just one goal the rest of the way to record their third victory.
Lee was dominant on draw controls with a 24-8 edge. White grabbed 13 of those, with Jaylee Giffin picking up six and Shayna Ryan five.
Caleigh Smith came off the bench at halftime to earn the victory in goal for Lee, making three saves and allowing just four goals over her 30 minutes. She is now 1-1. Michelle Guppy made 10 saves but took the loss for the visitors.
Lee heads to Florida next week for games at No. 22 St. Leo on Tuesday and at No. 13 Tampa on Friday.
"We know we will be tested down in Florida against two quality opponents but I think we've gained some really positive momentum over these last two home wins and hopefully we can carry that over on the road," concluded Martin.
