NORFOLK, Va. – Old Dominion lacrosse defeated Xavier 5-4 on Tuesday afternoon in the first meeting between the Monarchs and the Musketeers.
“Today was a testament to how deep we can play and how locked in our squad is from the sidelines,” said head coach Theresa Walton. “Players were called up today and they delivered offensively. From the defensive side, it was awesome to see how we could demand more from that unit, and they also delivered.”
The Musketeers (2-6) opened the game with a goal from Haley Reeck with 13 minutes remaining in the first quarter. This was followed by a goal from Megan Droney to increase the lead to 2-0 to close the period.
ODU (5-3) began the second quarter with a goal from Julia Butler off a free-position shot with 10 minutes remaining. Maria Snyder then connected with Annalynn Pompetti to tie the game at 2-2 with just under four minutes left. Two minutes later, Ashley Greene connected with Macy Steinewedel to give the Monarchs a 3-2 lead heading into halftime.
After the break, Xavier’s Samantha Balara tied the game again at 3-3 at the 10:59 mark. After a scoreless 10-minute stretch, Katie Pfieler connected with Greene for her first goal of the game to close the third quarter.
In the final quarter, ODU’s Kayleigh Flanegan opened the scoring with a goal off a free-position shot to increase the lead to 5-3 with just over 13 minutes remaining. Three minutes later, Maya Graham got past ODU goalkeeper Brynn Bowen to bring the final score to 5-4.
Brynn Bowen led ODU with 11 saves in goal, while Xavier goalkeeper Jada Brandon finished with nine. The Monarchs totaled 18 shots compared to 20 by the Musketeers.
“Individual effort from Brynn in the cage and Natalie in draw controls were key pieces to get the win,” Walton said. “Another gutsy game with a win outcome today. Great way to start this week with conference play on the horizon.”
The Monarchs travel to Charlotte, North Carolina, to face the 49ers on March 14 at 1 p.m. at Jerry Richardson Stadium.