March 18, 2007
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Vanderbilt ended its two game losing streak by scoring early and never looking back as the Commodores (4-3) defeated Hofstra 12-7 at the Vanderbilt Lacrosse Complex Sunday afternoon.
The scoring started quickly for the 16th ranked Commodores as senior Jennifer Tapscott got the first goal of the game less than ten seconds into the first half. Tapscott then added an assist on junior Margie Curran’s goal forty seconds later, and Vanderbilt found itself on top 2-0 less than a minute into the contest.
From there, the Commodores controlled the pace of the first half, controlling the ball for the majority of the time. Freshman Sarah Downing scored twice in the first half and senior Kendall Thrift also added a goal to give Vanderbilt a 5-0 lead, and the Commodores would lead 5-1 at halftime, thanks to an 18-8 shot advantage over the Pride (2-3).
Curran and Tapscott began the second half in similar fashion to the first, with each scoring their second goals of the game within the first four minutes to extend the lead to 7-1. Junior Ali Lemons would find the back of the net twice in the second half to help the Commodores preserve the lead.
Hofstra became more aggressive offensively in the second half, but timely goals by Vanderbilt kept the game out of reach. Thrift would score her second goal of the afternoon and also tallied an assist, while senior Nicole Pugno and sophomore Cara Giordano also scored in the second half to preserve the victory.
In all, Vanderbilt outshot Hofstra 32-20 in the contest, as junior goalkeeper Brooke Shinaberry recorded eight saves and earned her fourth victory of the season. The Commodores were also dominant on the draw, earning 14 draw controls to the Pride’s seven.
Vanderbilt returns to conference play when it travels to State College, Pennsylvania on Sunday, March 25th to face Penn State. Game time is schedule for 11:00 AM Central Time.
