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Commodores Drop Season Opener At Penn State, 15-7 2/26/2005 STATE COLLEGE, Penn. – The Vanderbilt lacrosse team dropped its season opener to American Lacrosse Conference rival Penn State, 15-7, Saturday inside Holuba Hall. Facing a barrage of shots, senior goalkeeper Ashley Bastinelli posted 15 saves on the day. On the offensive end, junior captain Kate Hickman scored a hat-trick, while sophomore Kendall Thrift also posted three points on one goal and two assists. Senior Meg Spies was the only other Commodore to score mulitple points, registering a pair of unassisted goals. Penn State came out quickly on their home turf, scoring the first six goals of the game to take a 6-0 lead in the first 10 minutes. Vanderbilt’s first goal of the game came 12 minutes in, when sophomore Jennifer Tapscott got the Commodores on the board on a free position shot. The Commodores narrowed the PSU lead to 7-3 in the 23rd minute on goals from Spies and Hickman. Vanderbilt held Penn State scoreless for 14 minutes, but the Nittany Lions scored twice in the final two minutes of the half to take a 9-3 lead into the break. Vanderbilt struck first in the second period when Thrift assisted Hickman for the second time in the contest. But Penn State would not allow a VU rally. Three more Vanderbilt goals were met by six from the Nittany Lions, and the final tally became 15-7. On defense, VU freshman Sasha Cielak led the Dores with five ground balls, while senior Kim Gianis and sophomore Molly Frew each caused a pair of turnovers. Penn State owned possession of the ball for chunks of the game, thanks in large part to the Nittany Lions’ 20-4 advantage in draw controls. The Commodores (0-1, 0-1 ALC) now have a week and a half off before playing their first home match on March 9, when the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame visit the VU Lacrosse Complex at 1 p.m. CT. Vanderbilt suffered a season-opening loss to Virginia, 14-10, in 2004 on its way to the NCAA semifinals. |
