Score: No. 5 Keiser Seahawks 18, No. 7 Indiana Tech Warriors 13
Records: No. 5 Keiser (8-2), No. 7 Indiana Tech (7-2)
Location: Lupo Family Field - Marietta, Ga.
No. 5 Keiser women's lacrosse turned a slow start into a dominant display, rallying from a 3-0 first-quarter deficit to outpace No. 7 Indiana Tech by five goals in a neutral-site matchup in Marietta. The Seahawks' offense caught fire in the second and third quarters, pulling away for good and getting a second consecutive win over the No. 7-ranked team in the NAIA. The Seahawks ended the day with three milestones reached as
Kate Griffin hit 100 draw controls,
Isabelle Vrensen reached 100 total points, and
Milena Isturiz scored her 100th goal of her career. Isturiz also made history when she picked up a groundball, becoming the all-time leader in groundballs in program history.
Indiana Tech came out with the edge early as Lilliana Rivera drew first blood less than two minutes in to make it 1-0. Michelle Farrell then struck at 9:11, pushing the Warriors' lead to two. Moments later, Kate Griffin picked up a green card on Keiser, and the Warriors cashed in on the ensuing man-up opportunity when Kylie King converted a feed from Brook Maul at 8:38 and Keiser was forced to call timeout. The Seahawks found their answer in Isabelle Vrensen who ignited the rally with a goal that started with her receiving a pass in the midfield. Then Griffin scored off a spin to make it 3-2 at 4:49. Emily McCall finished the run at 1:58 to tie the game at three. Indiana Tech countered with Addie Creech who won the draw and Lauren Hainlin found space to score off a free position at 1:07, giving the Warriors a 4-3 lead heading into the second.
Before Indiana Tech could settle in, Tess Geiger knotted things at four just 25 seconds into the period. Griffin won the ensuing draw and the Seahawks struck again as Emily McCall made it 5-4 at 13:48. Vrensen followed with another goal at 12:37, and suddenly it was 6-4 in a matter of minutes. The goal was the 100th point of Vrensen's career as Indiana Tech burned a timeout to regroup. The Warriors responded with a free position goal to pull it to 6-5. Keiser extended the lead back to two when Lucy Single drove past her defender to score at 10:34. The Warriors struck again on a free position at 8:04 to make it 7-6, at which point Keiser turned to backup goalkeeper Samantha Crowther. Griffin won the next draw, and Jia Schweigert scored at 7:39 to push the lead back to two. Then Griffin won another draw and Baylee Walker added a goal at 5:54 to make it 9-6. Indiana Tech closed the gap late in the half as Keiser went to the break holding a one-goal advantage.
The Seahawks won the opening draw of the third and Schweigert scored to make it 10-8. Indiana Tech would get a woman advantage off a green card, but the free position attempt was turned away by Crowther. Keiser took full control of the period from there as Milena Isturiz scored at 7:55 to make it 11-8, and a Mikayla Madden free-position goal at 5:14 pushed the lead to four. The Warriors briefly responded when Farrell scored but Keiser came right back. Reese Lynch converted a free position at 2:21 and MacKenzie Gibaud scored at 1:40 to make it 14-9. Keiser capitalized on a pair of cards late in the third as Schweigert completed a woman-up goal with 41 seconds left to end the quarter with a 15-9 lead.
Keiser extended the margin immediately, with Geiger burying a goal off a feed from Beth Leeder just 31 seconds into the final period. The Warriors were still fighting as Farrell converted a woman-up free position at 13:31 to make it 16-10. Indiana Tech continued pressing. She would score again before an answer from Gibaud at 4:07 pushed the lead back to six. Once again, Farrell converted a woman-up opportunity at 3:28 to make it 17-12, but Keiser would get a second goal from Madden to push it back to 18-12. Farrell picked up the final Warriors goal at 2:26, bringing the final score to 18-13 as the Seahawks held off the late run.
Keiser will have just under 24 hours to prepare for No. 5 Life tomorrow at the Lupo Family Field in Marietta. The opening draw control is set for noon.
- Keiser improves to 8-2 overall with the win
- With the victory, the Seahawks now leads the all-time series against the Warriors 3-1
- Keiser extended its winning streak at neutral-site regular-season contests to seven straight, improving to 2-0 all-time against Indiana Tech at neutral venues
- The Seahawks hold a 3-2 record against ranked opponents this season and move to 2-0 against No. 7
- Schweigert led the Seahawks with 3 goals on the day
- Vrensen led in points with a pair of goals and three assists
- With her second goal today, she reached the 100-point milestone in her career
- With her lone groundball, Isturiz now owns the record for most groundballs in program history
- She also hit the 100-goal milestone with her lone goal on the day
- Six different players scored two or more goals for the Seahawks on the afternoon
- Walker, Leeder, and Gibaud all had a pair of assists on the day
- Griffin dominated the draw circle again with a game-high 10 draw controls
- She has now surpassed 100 draw controls in her career
- It is her fourth game of at least 10 draw controls this season
- Walker, Belton, and Vrensen all had two caused turnovers in the game
- Crowther came into the game in relief but made six saves though Boutwell got credit for the win
No. 5 Keiser
Points: Vrensen (5)
Goals: Schweigert (3)
Assists: Vrensen (3)
Draw Controls: Griffin (10)
Ground Balls: Vrensen (3)
Caused Turnovers: Walker/Belton/Vrensen (2)
Saves: Crowther (6)
No. 7 Indiana Tech
Points: Farrell (9)
Goals: Farrell (8)
Assists: Maul (2)
Draw Controls: Rivera (4)
Ground Balls: Farrell (3)
Caused Turnovers: Kinder (3)
Saves: Hoff (7)
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