GREENVILLE, S.C. – Talen Francis led the way with three goals, but East Carolina captured an 18-11 win over Gardner-Webb in the 2019 season opener for the Runnin' Bulldogs.

East Carolina (2-0) jumped out to an 8-2 lead midway through the first half, before Gardner-Webb (0-1) closed the half on a 4-1 run to trail 9-6 at the break.

Freshman Jessica Vetter scored the first goal of her career with 11:18 to go before the half, followed by Lauren Deaver's second goal of the day. Francis scored to trim the lead to 9-5 with 4:18 on the clock and Abby Hanscom took a pass from freshman Jada Preston with 41 seconds to go for a 9-6 score.

The Pirates bumped the lead to 11-6 soon after the break, but Francis scored on a free position (23:56) and Maddie Martin converted a feed from Deaver (21:32) to cut the lead back to just three goals.

East Carolina pulled away from there, scoring four in a row to go up 15-8 with 12:44 to play. 

Preston scored her first career goal with 7:53 to play and assisted on a Catherine Fox score with 4:35 on the clock to get GWU into double figures. 

Hanscom scored again just before the horn to provide the final margin.

Gardner-Webb held a 37-36 shooting edge on the day, but saw East Carolina own a decisive edge in ground balls (23-15). Pirates goalie Christina White proved a major difference in the game, saving 16 shots on goal.

The Pirates got four goals from Megan Pallozzi and three from Emma Bowman to pace the offense. Britt Borchers scored twice and assisted on four goals.

In addition to Francis' hat trick, Gardner-Webb got two goals each from Deaver and Hanscom. Preston (1 goal, 2 assists) and Vetter (1 goal) scored for the first time in their careers, while Fox and Martin also found the back of the net.

Tori Birks and Eilish Gately each had assists for the Runnin' Bulldogs. Preston added four caused turnovers for GWU and Francis led the way with four ground balls.

Katie Sylvester (51:53) and Sarah Annable (8:07) each played between the pipes, with Annable making her Gardner-Webb debut.

Gardner-Webb will take a 13-day break before its next game, hosting Davidson on February 23 (Saturday) at 1:00 pm in Ernest W. Spangler Stadium. That opens a a four-game homestead for the 'Dogs, with Wofford (March 1), Delaware State (March 6) and Butler (March 10) also coming to Boiling Springs very soon.