BOILING SPRINGS – Gardner-Webb dropped its 2019 women's lacrosse home opener to Davidson Saturday afternoon, falling 22-6 in Ernest W. Spangler Stadium.
The visiting Wildcats (3-0) broke open a tight game early, scoring six unanswered goals over a span of 11 minutes to take an 8-2 lead with 11:22 to play before the half.
Gardner-Webb (0-2) responded with a goal from
Tori Birks with 8:56 left in the half, but Davidson scored twice more before
Talen Francis found the back of the net with 1:58 to play before halftime – cutting the Wildcats' lead to 10-4.
Davidson closed out the half with two more goals for a 12-4 edge at the break.
A 7-0 run that spanned both halves put the game away, as Davidson scored four goals in the first nine minutes of the second period.
Gardner-Webb found the net twice in the final 30 minutes, with senior
Abby Hanscom scoring on a free position with 17:23 remaining and assisting on a Francis goal with 11:59 on the clock.
Davidson held a decisive 41-15 shooting advantage in the game, and limited Gardner-Webb to only five shots in the second half. Gardner-Webb had 17 ground balls in the first half and finished with a 25-20 edge in that category for the day – and forced 13 Davidson turnovers.
Francis led the way once again offensively, scoring her second hat trick of the season with three goals. Hanscom,
Jada Preston and
Tori Birks also scored for Gardner-Webb. Birks was also strong on draw controls early for the Runnin' Bulldogs. She finished with 10 for the game.
Colleen Conn had four ground balls and four caused turnovers on the defensive end for Gardner-Webb.
Janice Donaldson,
Emily Rowell and
Jessica Vetter each finished with three ground balls.
Davidson was led by Braeden Dial (four goals, two assists), Gianna New (three goals), Emily Weld (three goals), Sophia Sgroi (two goals, two assists), Sam Rippley (two goals, two assists), Katie Woodruff (two goals) and Sarah Kopp (two goals).
Kopp also finished with a game-high eight ground balls and caused five turnovers – keying several transition opportunities for the Wildcats.
Gardner-Webb will be back in action on Friday, March 1, when they host Wofford at 5:00 pm in Ernest W. Spangler Stadium. The game will stream live on ESPN+, with Fabian Fuentes and Brendan Boylan on the call.
