Box Score

ITHACA, N.Y. -- The Cornell women's lacrosse team caused a school record 20 turnovers and rolled to an 11-5 victory over Le Moyne in its final non-conference tuneup before Saturday's Ivy League opener. The Big Red remained unbeaten (4-0), while the Dolphins had their two-game win streak snapped in falling to 2-4.

Both senior Deirdre Lafferty and freshman Caroline Helmer had three caused turnovers apiece, while senior Kelly Hansen had two and freshman Katie Kirck also added two. Kirk added five ground balls and four draw control wins. Everyone was in on the act, as 14 different Cornell players were credited with at least one caused turnover. Junior goalkeeper Kristen Reese notched a pair of saves and allowed two goals in the first 42:12 when the home team as Cornell jumped out to an 11-2 lead. Freshman Kyla Dambach, making her first collegiate appearance, made a pair of saves and surrendered three goals in front of the defense.

Offensively, senior Jessica Wiegand notched three goals, including both of her free-position shots, while sophomore Libby Johnson chipped in a pair of goals and an assist. Freshmen Shannon McHugh (two goals) and Jessi Steinberg (one goal, one assist) also had multi-point games. As a team, the Big Red out-shot the Dolphins 31-14, held a decisive 13-4 edge in draw controls, won the battle off the ground 24-17 and converted on 5-of-8 shots from the free-position, including all four in the decisive first half.

Freshman goalkeeper Kelly Fucillo was the standout for Le Moyne, stopping 14 shots one game after setting a career-high with 17 saves. Fucillo also won two ground balls out of the cage. Mia Valletta had two goals and two ground balls, while Rebekah Elmer had a goal and an assist in the loss. The visitors scored twice in the final 28 seconds to round out the scoring in a game thoroughly dominated by the Big Red. 

Cornell raced out to a 5-0 lead, holding the Dolphins scoreless for the first 28:27 of the first halfon the strength of four free-position goals, including two by McHugh. Michelle Phillips finally got Le Moyne on the board with the first of consecutive goals in the span of 40 seconds to cut the lead to 5-2, but Wiegand's second goal of the game with just 11 seconds left in the half ended all of the visitor's momentum. 

Another 5-0 Big Red run to open the second half blew the game open, pushign the lead to 11-2 with 9:11 left before Cornell emptied its bench, allowing the younger players an opportunity to get some action. The Dolphins scored the final three times, including a pair of goals in the final 28 seconds to make the score more respectable.

Cornell opens Ivy League play on Saturday, March 14 at 1 p.m. when it meets Columbia on the road.