Stifling defense lifts Women’s Lacrosse over Mars Hill, 12-3

MARS HILL, N.C. – The Catawba College women's lacrosse team reached its highest win total since 2022 with a 12-3 dispatching on the road against Mars Hill on Saturday afternoon.

TEAM STATS

- Catawba (4-3, 2-1 SAC) doubled up the Lions (1-6, 0-3 SAC) in shots, possessing a 25-11 margin in deliveries

- Mars Hill committed 25 turnovers against the Catawba Indians' 17, but the hosts were more efficient on the clear with a 21-for-22 outing versus the 24-for-27 day for Catawba

- On the draw, MHU racked up 13 controls while the visitors were limited to six

- Both teams were .500 on free position shots; however, Catawba earned eight opportunities to the Lions' two

- Ava Kunza earned the win with two saves in the opening half before Elli Ferraro made four stops in the second stanza; on the home side, Victoria Kaercher logged eight saves while going the distance for MHU

INDIVIDUAL STATS

- Helena Cronemiller and Kylie Harris led a 10-player list of Catawba scorers with two goals apiece

- Abby Shuren also recorded two points on the afternoon, scoring once with the Catawba Indians' lone assist

- Nine different players tallied multiple ground balls as Kunza, Audrey Adelsberger and Mary Sorvillo each logged three pickups

- Also leading the team with two draw controls, Adelsberger posted a squad-high three caused turnovers with Meredith Marchetti following at two takeaways

HOW IT HAPPENED

First Quarter

- Kaercher denied the first three scoring opportunities for Catawba, keeping the contest scoreless for the opening 10 minutes

- Charlize Skepple broke through on the visitors' second free position opportunity, scoring the only goal of the first stanza in a quiet start

Second Quarter

- MHU won the initial draw and saw Brooklyn Nemitz send in the game-tying strike, erasing the Catawba edge

- A Lion yellow card off the next draw was killed off by MHU who forced a turnover and held onto the rock, but failed to fire a shot in time for a clock violation that set up an Ella McCusker free position strike on the following possession

- Kunza turned away two more shots on goal from the Lions – one being a free position attempt – as halftime drew near

- Emily Better and Shuren got a pair of licks in before the break, insuring the Catawba lead at 4-1 through 30 minutes

Third Quarter

- Shortly after winning the first draw, MHU relinquished possession on a Sorvillo takeaway as Shuren connected with Harris to keep the train rolling

- Grace-Virginia Deal had a shot get stopped minutes later, but Skylar Mullin nabbed the rebound and tossed it back in

- Harris, Cronemiller and Sorvillo each found paydirt in a two-minute span to lift the Catawba Indians to a 9-1 lead midway through the frame

- Deal and Cronemiller poured on additional goals, putting the visitors in cruise control with a running clock thanks to the 10-goal advantage

Fourth Quarter

- MHU succeeded on a penalty kill early in the period, but another clock violation sent another scoring chance to the wayside as Joey Baillie chipped in a bullseye to continue stretching out the Catawba lead

- The hosts finally answered after 35 minutes of silence with an Addison Hellwig free position goal, then halted the running clock with 1:34 left as Chandler Werner found the twine

- Better tried to get Catawba back to a double-digit edge but was refused by Kaercher in the latter moments of the visitors' 12-3 triumph

UP NEXT

The Catawba Indians return home for a midweek clash under the lights on Wednesday, Mar. 19 at 7 p.m. against Coker.