Greensboro, NC – The University of Pittsburgh at Bradford women's lacrosse team resumed its spring break trip in North Carolina with a match-up against the Greensboro College Pride. The Panthers jumped out to a 10-2 halftime lead and then finished strong with 6 fourth-quarter goals to win the game 20-9.
The Panthers burst out of the gate firing, as they took the first few shots of the contest. Christina Abel found the net first for Pitt-Bradford, scoring a solo goal to put the Panthers in front. Within minutes, the Panthers doubled their lead when Aryanna Hatch scored an unassisted goal. The Panthers maintained their offensive intensity on the Greensboro goal, and Addison Molampy scored two back-to-back goals. The second was scored with a Panther in the penalty box.
After the restart, Molampy completed her hat-trick, converting a free position shot to give the Panthers a 5-0 lead. Samantha Burke found the net less than 30 seconds after the draw, weaving between Greensboro defenders before whipping a shot past the goalie. The Pride maintained the majority of possession for the next two minutes and were able to forcea Pitt-Bradford penalty. This disadvantage did nothing to slow the Pitt-Bradford offense, as Christina Abel scored her second goal of the game off an assist from Molly Wampler.
Abel's second goal triggered a Greensboro timeout, which was effective in refocusing the Pride. The hosts finally got on the board, cutting the deficit to 6. The Panthers had an immediate answer, scoring two goals directly off the draw to push their lead to 8 within 24 seconds. Olivia Garcia scored the Panthers' 8th goal on an assist by Hatch, and then Haley Carlo got on the scoresheet with Molampy picking up the assist. After six scoreless minutes, the Pride used a player advantage to score their second of the game with just 1:47 left in the half. The Panthers were able to end the quarter on a high note, as Hatch scored her second goal of the game, giving Pitt-Bradford a 10-2 halftime edge.
The Pride started the second half hot, scoring a man-down goal after a minute of play in the third. With a Greensboro player in the box with an unreleasable penalty, the Panthers scored two more times to extend their lead to 9. Garcia got her second goal of the game off a pass from Hatch, and then turned provider, picking up the assist on Abel's 3rd of the game. Greensboro scored seconds after a Pitt-Bradford green card, but their tally was matched a few minutes later when Molly Wampler tallied her first goal of the game. Molampy picked up the assist on the goal. The Pride responded with a pair of quick goals off the draw, cutting the lead back to 8 in 42 seconds. Pitt-Bradford called a timeout after the second and regained control. They took the next two shots of the game before drawing a penalty. Hatch took responsibility for the ensuing free-position shot and converted it for her third of the game.
Pitt-Bradford started the final quarter on the front foot, scoring their fourth free-position goal of the game. Burke converted the shot for her 2nd of the game. The Pride took advantage of a Panther penalty to score a man-up goal with 12 minutes remaining, but the Panthers responded with 3 straight goals. Garcia scored the first with a Panther still in the box before Molampy and Abel each scored their 4th goals of the game. The Pride pulled two goals back with 5 minutes remaining, but the Panthers closed the game as strongly as they started it. Burke became the 5th Panther to register a hat-trick in the game, as she scored off a feed from Abel. Molampy closed the contest with her 5th of the game.
Addison Molampy led the Panthers with 5 goals from 6 shots. She also had 2 assists and draw controls. Christina Abel was just behind her with 4 goals of her own and led the team with 7 draw controls. Aryanna Hatch, Samantha Burke, and Olivia Garcia all finished with three goals, while Hatch tallied 2 assists. Molly Wampler and Haley Carlo also added a goal each. Lily Thuman had 9 saves in the win.
This victory moves Pitt-Bradford's record to 3-3. The Panthers will be back in action on Thursday, when they take on Warren Wilson. Opening draw is scheduled for 6:00 p.m.
