NORFOLK, Va. – A Danielle Dundas goal with 3:57 remaining in the second half proved to be the difference as the Old Dominion women's lacrosse team (1-2) held off Longwood (0-3), 14-13, on Saturday afternoon at the L.R. Hill Sports Complex.
"We had a lot of great hustle plays today, but we still need to clean up our stick work and make smarter decisions throughout the game," head coach Heather Holt said. "We are learning each game and building this team every day. I am really excited about the direction we are going, and every win is a good win."
Trailing 13-8 with 13 minutes to go, the Lancers ripped off a 4-0 run to pull to within a goal with 4:37 remaining. Goals from Emma Johnson and Nicole Fordyce sandwiched a pair of markers from Haley Moomau. Dundas stemmed the tide with her third goal of the game at the 3:57 mark. Taylor Blenckstone scored with 41 seconds remaining to put the final outcome in question right up to the final horn.
Dundas shared the game high in goals with Caroline Shaefer and Haley O'Connor. Shaefer set a new personal best and nearly doubled her career goal tally after scoring four times in nine games last season. O'Connor scored her first collegiate goals on Saturday, and Dundas hit a career high as well.
Shaefer put the Monarchs on the board first just 39 seconds into the contest then delivered again with 18:13 on the clock to make the score 2-2. She then set up O'Connor to give ODU its second lead of the day at 3-2, but Longwood leveled the score less than 30 seconds later.
From there, the Monarchs built a small degree of separation with a 6-3 run to close out the half. Dundas and Ali Mills found the back of the net to make the score 5-3. Following a Lancers goal, the Monarchs scored twice more for a 7-4 advantage, the largest of the game at that point. The two sides traded goals for the remainder of the half with Corrinne Stratton providing the last goal of the half to make it 9-6.
Lilly Siskind opened the second half with a tally just 52 seconds after the intermission to give the Monarchs a four-goal edge. The next two goals went to the Lancers, but Old Dominion responded with a 3-0 run, highlighted by woman-up goals by Stratton and Dundas.
Lindsay Baer handed out three assists for a new personal best and added a pair of ground balls. Shaefer notched two assists for a game-high five points and snared six draw controls.
Maria Rekus caused a game-high four turnovers to set a personal best.
Jenna Peccia drew her first starting assignment in goal for ODU and made 11 saves in 60 minutes.
The Monarchs return to the L.R. Hill Sports Complex for a March 3 game with Delaware State at 1 p.m.
Women’s Lacrosse Survives Second-Half Scare in 14-13 Win over Longwood
