March 25, 2018
INDIANAPOLIS–Vanderbilt lacrosse earned its first conference win of the season in impressive fashion Sunday, defeating Butler 17-8 on the road.
The Commodores (6-3, 1-1 BIG EAST) led from start to finish, claiming their first BIG EAST win of the season over the Bulldogs (1-9, 0-2 BIG EAST).
Senior attacker Kayla Peterson had five goals and an assist for the Commodores, scoring her 100th collegiate point in the first half. She also established a new career-high for goals in a season with 34 through nine games, surpassing her 2017 total of 29 in 15 games.
“She’s an awesome player,” Vanderbilt head coach Cathy Swezey said. “She gives so much and works so hard on the field. I couldn’t be happier for her and her achievements.”
Vanderbilt led 10-2 at halftime on the strength of three points from Peterson and four from sophomore attacker Emily Mathewson. Mathewson finished with four goals on four shots, and tied her personal-best with three assists in the win.
“We’ve struggled with starting games a little bit slow,” Swezey said. “We made it a goal of ours to get a faster start today and I thought we achieved that. I was really happy to see us come out of the gate quickly and play hard.”
The Dores outshot the Bulldogs, 33-20, with seven players scoring goals in the win.
Senior attacker Leah Peterson scored her first goal of the season on an assist from her twin sister, Kayla. Freshman midfielder Elizabeth Scarrone collected her first two collegiate points on a pair of assists. Junior midfielder Melanie Becker scored three goals for her second hat trick of the season.
Defenders Alex Rasmussen and Frankie Angeleri led the Dores with five ground balls each in front of Grace Bell, who made four saves in goal. Vanderbilt forced five failed Butler clears, owning play between the restraining lines.
“Frankie, Alex, and our back line were really awesome on ground balls today, which was big for our defense,” Swezey said. “Melissa Hawkins was great once again in our transition game.”
The Commodores return home for their next three games, beginning Wednesday afternoon at 3 p.m. against Oregon at the VU Soccer/Lacrosse Complex, in the team’s final non-conference game of the season. Admission is free, and the first 250 fans receive a voucher for one free concession item.
