LEXINGTON, Va. -- Virginia Wesleyan College's women's lacrosse team outscored No. 14 ranked Washington & Lee University 5-2 in a six minute span Saturday on the Generals' field, but the host team took charge in the final 12 minute to post a 19-10 Old Dominion Athletic Conference victory.
Junior Natalie Belva (Colorado Springs, Colo./Liberty) ignited the VWC run, scoring back-to-back goals to pull the Marlins (5-6, 2-2) with an 11-6 score. Rookie Lauren Davis (Middleburg, Va./Mercersburg Academy, Pa.), Tara Harding (Waterford, N.Y./Clifton Park Shenendehowa), and Courtney Shelton (Prince Frederick, Md./Huntingtown) all scored in the run that cut the WLU lead to 13-9 with 13:04 still remaining to be played.
But, the Generals (7-4, 4-0) got the offensive lift they were looking for when Alex Van Horn (Annapolis, Md./Annapolis) scored back-to-back goals to repad the WLU lead. Washington and Lee outscored VWC 6-1 in the final 12 minutes to create the final margin of victory.
WLU opened up a 4-2 lead early, before Courtney Williams (Leonardtown, Md./Leonardtown) and Nikki Salyers (Severna Park, Md./Severna Park) scored back-to-back goals to help Virginia Wesleyan create a 4-all tie with 18:38 remaining in the first half.
But, WLU (7-4, 4-0) came back strong, scoring seven consecutive goals , including two by Wilton Megargel (Charlottesville, Va./St. Anne's-Belfield), as the host Generals opened up a 10-4 halftime advantage.
Megargel also scored the first goal of the second half to push the lead to 11-4. But, the Marlins sparked offensively, ignited by Belva.
Belva led VWC with four goals, tying her season high for the third time this season. Harding finished with two goals, extending her scoring streak to eight consecutive games.
Brittany MacKnew (Abingdon, Md./Bel Air) and Michelle Mace (Dumfries, Va./Woodbridge Forest Park)both spent a half protecting the goal for the Marlins. MacKnew produced nine saves and Mace recorded five. Katharine Farrar (Lexington, Va./Episcopal) had 11 saves for the Generals.
Virginia Wesleyan competes again on Thursday, Apr. 7, hosting Randolph-Macon College's Yellow Jackets in an ODAC game beginning at 7 p.m. at the Trinder Center.
--AMDG--
