High Point, N.C. — The High Point University women's lacrosse team started hot and never let up in a 21-15 victory over the defending ASUN Champions Coastal Carolina on Saturday afternoon.
High Point won in team fashion as the bench played significant minutes and saw leading scorer and senior captain
Esprit Cha net the 100th goal of her collegiate career. The Panthers had 12 players find the back of the net, dominating on offense from start to finish.
Reese Dowgiallo had a dominant offensive game with six points as four were assists to match her career high.
SITE: Vert Stadium
SCORE: High Point 21, Coastal Carolina 15
RECORDS: High Point (3-4), Coastal Carolina (4-5)
Head Coach Lyndsey Boswell: "I'm really happy to get a second win at home this week. I'm really proud of the effort in the first half; I thought our execution was excellent. We always challenge our starters to do their job early so that we can get their teammates on the field and they did a really good job in the opening quarters. The whole first half started with the draw for us because we were able to dominate that. We really controlled possession time and that translated to the defense. I continue to be really proud of our captains and our upperclassmen. The way they lead is very unique to college sports, and I'm not underestimating what they do for the group during practice. It's showing up big time in games, so I'm really proud of our leaders."
It took the Panthers 32 seconds to find themselves on the scoreboard with a
Shannon Smith goal that Dowgiallo assisted. Cha scored on a free position shot, and
Allie Connally hit a side-arm look. The Panthers held a 3-0 in less than three minutes played.
High Point continued the offensive fireworks with three more goals after Coastal Carolina was able to put one in the back of the net. Cha scored again from a free-position shot for her 100th career goal, while Dowgiallo added to her double-digit goals this season with her 11th.
Dowgiallo was not finished in the first quarter as she assisted
Tatum Goettelmann.
Like the first quarter, the Panthers opened up the second just as quickly with another Connally goal 49 seconds in.
Mandy Brockamp then got her name into the scoring column with a goal. Cha continued her dominant season as she secured the hat trick to give the Panthers a 9-2 lead.
With 10:36 remaining in the first half, sophomore
Gracie Vickery scored off a free position shot for her second career goal and first this season. Smith connected for her second goal of the game, then Cha scored her fourth to make the score 12-3.
After the Chanticleers scored a fourth goal, Dowgiallo netted her second to give the Panthers a nine-goal lead heading into halftime.
Sophomore goalkeeper
Ava Welsh had a strong first half, saving 60 percent of the shots on goal.
High Point dominated all facets of the game in the first half, winning 14-of-18 draw controls and securing nine ground balls to Coastal Carolina's five. Seven different Panthers scored in just the first 30 minutes of play.
High Point saw a double-digit lead and a running clock with a
Lily Trout free-position goal as she started and finished the period with a goal. Coastal Carolina scored again, but as they did all game, the Panthers responded with a
Bella Germani goal.
Connally secured a hat trick herself with 7:48 remaining in the third quarter to extend the Panthers lead to 16-5.
The Chanticleers went on a 5-1 goal run early in the fourth quarter, bringing the score to 17-10.
With 9:37 remaining, Goettelmann found a cutting Germani with a beautiful pass to give the Panthers an 18-10 lead.
Redshirt freshman
Ella McKay scored their first collegiate goal while junior
Jaidyn Donley scored her first in Purple & White in the fourth quarter.
Kate Prentice also joined the scoring parade with a goal of her own.
Coastal Carolina scored a majority of their goals in the final quarter, but it was not enough as High Point held on to win by six.
Connally led the Panthers with seven draw controls as Trout and Vickery had four apiece. Donley and Welsh had three ground balls each.
Up Next: The Panthers will have a week to prepare for their game in Blacksburg against the Virginia Tech Hokies on Sunday, March 23, at 11 a.m.
#GoHPU
