Ephs Women's Lacrosse Completes California Sweep, Beat No. 11 Pomona-Pitzer 16-6

CLAREMONT, CA. -- Williams women's lacrosse finished off its West Coast swing in style on Wednesday night, using a hot start to defeat the No. 11 Pomona-Pitzer Sagehens 16-6. Six goals in the opening quarter gave the Ephs early momentum en route to a comfortable victory. The win, the Ephs' third in a row, pulls them to 4-3 on the season. With the loss, the Sagehens fall to 9-2 this year.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Sydney Puntus opened the scoring for Williams, cutting to her right and finishing into the roof of the net to put the Ephs ahead 1-0 with 13:23 to go in the first quarter.

• Pomona-Pitzer responded quickly, as Fiona Lewis freed herself with a nice head fake and converted on the left side to tie the score at 1-1 with 11:35 remaining in the first.

• Williams went on a quick spurt to punch back. First, Franny Donohue fired home a rocket from distance just 33 seconds after Pomona-Pitzer's goal, then Reece Willison drove inside and deposited a crisp shot into the top left corner to extend the lead to 3-1 with 9:49 to go in the quarter.

• Two more Donohue goals boosted the Williams lead. She first finished high and right on a free-position attempt with 8:12 to play in the first quarter, then got her hat trick on a cut and finish above the outstretched stick of the goalie with 7:31 to go.

• Great team passing added to the Ephs' advantage a few minutes later. Claudia Russell found Puntus, who fired quickly to Katy McCullough, and McCullough found the back of the net from point-blank range to make the score 6-1 with 4:28 remaining in the first quarter.

• The Ephs jumped on the Sagehens to start the second quarter. McCullough used good stick-work and deposited a goal low and left just 30 seconds into the quarter, then McKenna Dwyer scored a bouncing free-position attempt to put the Ephs ahead 8-1 with 13:42 remaining.

• Donohue added to the tally with her fourth goal of the game, a free-position shot that found the gap between the goaltender's legs, to make the score 9-1 with 12:46 to play in the half.

• The Sagehens defense picked up following Donohue's goal, holding the Ephs scoreless for over ten minutes as goals from Hannah Gough and River Buechner shrunk the deficit to 9-3 with 3:14 remaining in the first half.

• Donohue got the Ephs back on the scoreboard. Ainsley Abel found her inside, and she slung a low shot into the back of the net to make the score 10-3 with 2:02 to play in the half.

• Pomona-Pitzer scored the final goal of the half, as Gwynn Sullivan finished a free-position attempt up high with 1:20 to go. The Ephs took a 10-4 lead into the break.

• A prolonged defensive stalemate in the third quarter, highlighted by numerous Caroline Pratt saves for the Ephs, was broken with 1:15 to play. Claudia Russell passed across the field to Dwyer, who found the top right corner on a lengthy shot attempt to give the Ephs an 11-4 lead.

• With 19 seconds left in the quarter, the Sagehens called a timeout, which paid off as they then converted a goal. Shoshi Henderson passed from behind the goal-line extended to Calli Cross, who finished into the bottom left to make the score 11-5 with eight seconds to go in the quarter.

• The Ephs responded with an early fourth quarter flurry of goals. First, Donohue received a pass from Russell, drove right, and deposited a goal into the bottom left corner to make it 12-5 with 13:49 left in the game. Then, Anna Miller whipped a pass to a cutting Donohue, who netted a goal into the top left corner just 44 seconds later to make it 13-5. 

• Under 40 seconds after Donohue scored, Dwyer made a few stick fakes and split two defenders on the right side to find an opening and fire a shot into the left inside netting, giving the Ephs a 14-5 advantage with 12:26 to play in the fourth quarter.

• After a yellow card on the Ephs' Meaghan Day, Grace Tighe scored for the Sagehens on a Sydney Landauer assist to cut the lead to 14-6 with 11:19 to play.

• In another quick Williams response, Puntus made a strong move to free herself beneath the goal, dumping a pass off to an open Kilborn in the middle. Kilborn scored her first goal of the game to make the score 15-6 with 10:44 left in the game.

• A heavily-contested McCullough finish into the upper right corner with 7:27 to go marked the final goal of the Ephs' 16-6 victory.

NOTES

• Donohue outscored the Sagehens by herself, finishing with a season-high seven goals.

• Dwyer and McCullough each provided a hat-trick to complement Donohue's scoring, while Russell led all players with four assists.

• Pratt proved huge in goal, finishing with 11 saves.

• For the third consecutive game, the Williams defense held its opponent to their lowest scoring output of the season.

• Williams has won its past three games, two against nationally ranked opponents, by a combined 29 goals.

Williams looks to continue its momentum on Saturday at home against Connecticut College. The game begins at 1 p.m. Connecticut College is 6-3 this season, coming off of an 18-7 victory over Westfield State.