WAYNESBURG, Pa. (March 19) – The Waynesburg University women's lacrosse team opened Ohio River Lacrosse Conference (ORLC) play on Saturday by hosting The College of Mt. St. Joseph at John F. Wiley Stadium. The two teams played to a halftime tie, but the Lions were able to pull away in the second period for a 13-9 win.
 
After falling behind 2-0, the Yellow Jackets (0-2, 0-1) grabbed their first lead of the snowy, rainy contest thanks to three unanswered goals. Junior Abbie Miller opened a big day with her team's first score. Junior Jess Rains followed with a pair of tallies to give the home team a 3-2 edge with 18:29 remaining in the opening period.
 
The Lions (2-3, 1-0) regained the advantage with a pair of tallies to make the score 4-3, before Miller struck again with her second of the contest. Mt. St. Joseph briefly regained the edge at 5-4 with 3:31 showing on the first-half clock. The Jackets found the net one last time before the break when junior Holly Bachman scored to tie things up at 5-5.
 
The match's back-and-forth theme continued past the halftime break as the two squads alternated the period's first four goals. Rains and Miller each beat the opposing keeper, and with 25:16 left in regulation, the score was tied up at 7-7.
 
Unfortunately, the Lions were able to gain firm control of the game with a four-goal spurt that lasted until the 41:55 mark of the contest. Miller scored two more times before the final horn was sounded, but it wasn't enough, as Mt. St. Joseph wrapped up the four-point victory.
 
Miller played arguably her best collegiate game by scoring a game-high five goals and tying for the contest lead with five total points. Rains notched a hat trick in the loss, while junior Shannon Morgan recorded her first assist as a Yellow Jacket.
 
Senior JoHanna Phillips did all she could to help her team win by stopping 17-of-30 shots on goal. The Jackets were the model of offensive efficiency, as they were successful on nine-of-10 attempts on the net.
 
Waynesburg is off until Tuesday, March 22, when it travels to Medaille for a non-conference match. Start time is scheduled for 6 p.m.