March 5, 2018
NASHVILLE–Vanderbilt lacrosse’s high-scoring offense led the way in a 19-6 win over William & Mary on Monday afternoon at the VU Soccer/Lacrosse Complex.
Nine players scored goals for the Commodores (4-1, 0-0 BIG EAST) against the Tribe (2-3, 0-0 Colonial Athletic), while seven Vanderbilt players had multi-point efforts in the win. The Dores remain the second-ranked scoring offense in the country at 18.60 goals per game.
“We put ourselves on offense a lot early in the first half and missed a lot of shots, but the key is to keep shooting,” Vanderbilt head coach Cathy Swezey said. “Michael Jordan said it better than me, but you’ve got to keep shooting and you’ll find your rhythm, and I think we did.”
Vanderbilt jumped ahead on junior midfielder Julie Blaze‘s goal just 42 seconds in, but scored just once more in the next 15 minutes. The game was tied 2-2 at the midway mark of the first half before the Commodores ignited a 6-0 run.
Junior attacker Hadley Brown scored two nearly identical goals in 40 seconds to put Vandy up 4-2, and junior midfielder Melanie Becker added two consecutive goals of her own as the Dores pulled away for good with 11 minutes remaining in the period. Becker finished with a career-high five goals and six points in the game, topping her previous bests of three goals and four points.
“The thing about Mel is that a lot of what she does goes unnoticed, and she is clearly one of the most premier players we have,” Swezey said. “She’s so aggressive, so fast, so intense and hard-working. She does everything well. She’s one of the truest midfielders I’ve ever coached.”
Freshman attacker Gabrielle Fornia set up Brown’s back-to-back goals just outside the goal circle, and finished with a career-high five points. The Mt. Laurel, N.J. native registered two goals, three assists, three ground balls and a game-high 10 shots for the Commodores, who outshot William & Mary 47-19 on the day.
Sophomore goalkeeper Madison Foglio made her second start of the season for VU, making nine saves while allowing only six goals.
“She’s just a great goalie,” Swezey said. “She’s a great stopper, she’s great at clearing [and] she’s very active out of the cage. She just sees the ball well. We had a good meeting with her a couple weeks ago and I think it just turned her up a notch. She’s performing really well.”
The Commodores finish their three-game, season-opening homestand with a 2-1 record on their home turf. Vanderbilt’s busy spring break week continues on Thursday, as the Dores visit La Salle for the first of two games in Philadelphia. Opening draw against the Explorers is at 5 p.m. CT.
