BOILING SPRINGS, N.C. — The High Point University Panthers women's lacrosse team took to the road for the final time in the regular season, defeating the Gardner-Webb University Runnin' Bulldogs 13-6. The Panthers were led by Reese Dowgiallo, who returned after missing the last 10 games, as she finished with four goals and three assists. Shannon Smith also finished with a hat trick.
SITE: Spangler Stadium
SCORE: High Point 13, Gardner-Webb 6
RECORDS: High Point (6-9, 6-1), Gardner-Webb (2-14, 2-5)
Head Coach Lyndsey Boswell: "Always good to get a conference win on the road. I felt like we had a really slow day from start to finish. Honestly, we did not execute in a way that we're capable of, but credit to Gardner-Webb because they took advantage of that and gave us a great game. We are so happy to have Reese [Dowgiallo] back. She's a great leader for us. She came in and picked up where she left off with her teammates, and just happy to get her back out there and let her finish her career on a high note."
Back-to-back reigning Freshman of the Week, Anna Mullikin got the Panthers on the board first, less than three minutes into the game. The Runnin' Bulldogs tied the game up at one a piece before Anna Checkosky scored on a free position shot. Ava Grandi followed the Checkosky goal up with one of her own as the Panthers took a 3-2 lead into the second quarter.
Dowgiallo made her presence known as she scored back-to-back goals less than a minute apart to give the Panthers a 5-2 lead. Less than a minute left in the first half, Kate Prentice received a pass from Dowgiallo as she gave the Panthers a 6-3 lead.
After a Gardner-Webb goal, Smith scored the Panthers' first goal of the second half. Then, Lily Trout, in a woman-up situation, gave HPU a four-goal lead. Dowgiallo secured the hat trick with 8:29 remaining in the third quarter as the Panthers went up 9-4. Jaidyn Donley got High Point to the double-digit mark before Dowgiallo scored her fourth of the game, giving the Panthers an 11-4 lead heading into the final 15 minutes.
Dowgiallo found Smith with 9:33 remaining in the contest to extend the lead to eight. The pair was then successful again, in the same manner, less than two minutes later. The Runnin' Bulldogs scored twice in the final quarter, but the Panthers pulled out the win.
Caitlyn Baehr scooped up three ground balls and recovered five draw controls. Tatum Mehring caused three turnovers and scooped up another three ground balls. Goalie Ava Welsh finished with six saves and four ground balls.
Up Next: The Panthers head back to Vert Stadium for Senior Day to take on Presbyterian College. The matchup will take place on April 25, at 12:00 p.m
#GoHPU x #RollThers
