GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The Vanderbilt lacrosse team was handed a 16-11 defeat by the Temple Owls in the American Athletic Conference semifinals at the University of Florida’s Donald R. Dizney Stadium on Thursday.
The second-seeded Commodores see their run in Gainesville end in the semifinals with third-seeded Temple moving on to face top-seeded Florida in Saturday’s final.
Vanderbilt (12-6, 7-3 AAC) scored the opening goal, but the Owls answered with the next three to take the lead and never looked back. Temple used a six-goal run between the halves to solidify the result.
All-AAC first team midfielder Cassidy Orban paced the Vanderbilt offense with five goals. Gabby Fornia scored once and had three assists, while Bri Gross and Elizabeth Scarrone tallied two goals apiece.
Make that five goals for Cassidy Orban. #AnchorDown pic.twitter.com/XlMYsGe6sX
— Vanderbilt Lacrosse (@VandyLacrosse) May 7, 2021
Sophomore goalkeeper Paige Gunning stopped eight Owl shots on the evening.
Vanderbilt outshot Temple by a 30-27 count and had 22 ground balls to Temple’s 15.
The Owls were led by four goals from Belle Mastropietro to go with three from both Bridget Whitaker and Charesse Crosse.
Vanderbilt will await its fate in the NCAA Tournament, with the selection show taking place 8 p.m. Sunday on ESPNU.
