RICHMOND, Va. --- Abby Hanscom (Eden Prairie, Minn.) and Emma Rufolo (Woodstock, Md.) each scored a hat trick and Cassidy McDowell (Cincinnati, Ohio) made a season-high 16 saves as Virginia Commonwealth outscored Gardner-Webb by a 12-4 margin in the first half en route to a 21-9 victory on Sunday afternoon.
Gardner-Webb (0-2) scored a season-high nine goals on 16 shots, as Virginia Commonwealth (1-0) outshot the Runnin' Bulldogs by a 20-8 margin in the second half. The Rams recorded 21 draw controls compared to 10 for Gardner-Webb, while VCU scooped up 27 ground balls on the afternoon.
Hanscom, Rufolo and Sadie Bryant (Charlottesville, Va.) each scored their first collegiate goal, as Hanscom and Rufolo both posted a hat trick to pace the Runnin' Bulldogs. Alex Fusco (Marietta, Ga.) and Bryant recorded two and one goals, respectively, while Rufolo tallied three draw controls and three ground balls to go along with three caused turnovers.
Fusco and Brooke Fernandes (Greensboro, N.C.) controlled three and two draws, respectively, as McDowell stopped 16 shots.
Molly Barcikowski led the way for VCU with five goals and three assists, as Blaire Langeler and Mackenzie Galli each tallied a hat trick. Sky Hyatt chipped in a goal and a game-high four assists to go along with a contest-best six draw controls. Ria Peralta and Jodi Enfield combined for seven saves, with each playing one half.
Barcikowski opened the scoring for VCU with two goals in the opening eight minutes before Fusco answered for the Runnin' Bulldogs, halving the margin to 2-1 with 20:19 to go in the first half. The Rams quickly countered with three straight strikes, pushing the advantage to 5-1 with a Galli tally at the 16:13 mark.
Rufolo and Hanscom opened their collegiate accounts less than a minute apart moments later, trimming the margin to 5-3 with 14:01 to go in the half. After Langeler and Hanscom traded strikes to put VCU ahead, 6-4, the Rams closed the half with six straight goals to take a 12-4 advantage into the intermission.
Fusco, Rufolo and Bryant cut the lead to 13-7 with consecutive strikes early in the second half, as Bryant capped the spurt with her first collegiate goal off a feed from Fusco at the 19:17 mark. VCU would answer with seven of the next eight goals, widening the gap to 20-8 on a tally from Hyatt with 4:45 to play.
Rufolo completed her hat trick 45 seconds later to cap the scoring for the Runnin' Bulldogs.
Gardner-Webb is back in action on Wednesday when the Runnin' Bulldogs host William & Mary at 5:00 pm in Spangler Stadium.
