WISE, Va. – Maggie Luzier scored the tying goal and only fourth quarter score with 23 seconds left and Brittney White sealed the dramatic win with a goal in overtime to keep the Lee women's lacrosse team undefeated with a 12-11 win over Virginia Wise on Sunday afternoon.
Luzier and White tallied three goals each in the thrilling victory. Luzier also added three assists for a game-high six points. Hannah Vecsey had two scores and Callie Curtis, Noelle Harrington, Caleigh Kenna, and Megan Trout added one goal each.
Lee held a 5-4 edge in a first half defensive battle. The offenses got going as the two teams combined for 12 third-quarter goals with the Cavaliers taking an 11-10 lead into the fourth. The fourth quarter featured just one goal, Luzier's game-tying strike with under a minute to play.
"We can always expect UVA Wise to play us tough and they did again today. I didn't have us ready for the fast and aggressive play we faced so we will make some adjustments, so we don't look as nervous next time. On both ends of the field, there were adjustments I should have made earlier in the game, which may have helped us out sooner," noted Lee head coach Derrel Martin.
The Lady Flames outshot the Cavaliers, 37-20 and placed 28 on mark. The Lee defense forced 27 turnovers in the victory and surrendered just 16.
"On attack, we were able to make plenty of shots but most of them found their goalie so that will be an area of emphasis this week. Maggie Luzier turned in another multiple point game with 3 goals and 3 assists," said Martin. "Brittney White continues to do good work on our draw controls and came up with a clutch shovel shot to win it in double over-time. She is accurate as a post player in the 8 meter and can regularly make that shot even when facing away from the goal."
Kaleigh Bernard earned the win in goal allowing seven goals while recording five saves and three ground balls in 55:58 of work. Caleigh Smith came on for the final 7:02 and gave up four goals.
In addition to his goalies, Coach Martin praised his defenders, "On defense we had solid play but Wise hit a high percentage of shots. Kelsey McGowen had a great defensive day with four caused turnovers and three ground balls. Audrey Dutton has stepped in and filled a spot on defense with solid play in our last two games. She is someone who can be plugged in to almost any position on the field."
Logen Davis led the Cavaliers with four goals while Kaila Lacey added two. Caitlyn Shultz registered three ground balls and dished off two assists. Olivia Toomer had 16 saves in the loss for UVA-Wise.
"Once again, our ride produced turnovers and opportunities because of good hustle by our players. We did well on our clears despite our opponent's pressure," added Martin. "We have two more games this week so we will need to adapt quickly to the different on-field situations we can expect with our next opponents."
The Lady Flames move to 3-0 while UVA-Wise falls to 2-1 on the season. After three straight road games to start the year, Lee will play its home opener on Wednesday at the Ray Conn Sport Complex against Mars Hill. Opening Draw is set for 6 p.m.
