Trio of Hat Tricks Leads Women's Lacrosse to 11-8 Win at William & Mary

Sunday, April 10

Williamsburg, Va.

12:30 p.m.

Drexel University

8-4, 1-1

William & Mary

6-7, 0-3

Drexel

William & Mary

Photo by: Greg Carroccio

Trio of Hat Tricks Leads Women's Lacrosse to 11-8 Win at William & Mary

4/10/2016 3:13:00 PM | Women's Lacrosse

Box Score

WILLIAMSBURG, Va. - Less than 48 hours after seeing a late lead evaporate in a tough overtime loss at James Madison, the Drexel women's lacrosse team displayed some impressive resolve on Sunday afternoon as the Dragons used a late four-goal run to overcome a William & Mary comeback effort on the Tribe's home field and win their first Colonial Athletic Association game of the season, 11-8. Drexel scored the first four goals of the game and held a 6-4 halftime lead before three straight Tribe goals to start the second half put the hosts ahead. Drexel responded both offensively and defensive, however, holding William & Mary off the scoreboard for nearly 20 minutes as the Dragons netted four straight to take back a lead it would not relinquish.

Nadia Pelham-Lacey, who scored the eventual game-winner as part of that late Drexel run, scored three goals and added an assist, her eighth game this season with at least three points. Lacey Aghazarian also had a hat trick, her first of the year, and Devin Nihill extended her team-leading goal total to 26 with three goals of her own. Caroline Thiele added a goal - which tied the game at seven after William & Mary had takent he lead - and an assist, and Grace Osterdale netted her second goal of the year and her second goal in as many games.

It looked early on like the Dragons (8-4, 1-1) may be able to run away with their first CAA win of the season. Drexel scored the first four goals of the game and held the Tribe off the scoreboard for nearly 14 minutes to open play. Pelham-Lacey scored first, an unassisted goal just 3:08 into the action. Two minutes later, Thiele fed Nihill for the Dragons' second goal, followed 30 seconds later by Pelham-Lacey's second. Aghazarian made it a 4-0 game when she worked inside for an unassisted goal at the 21:39 mark of the first half.

The Tribe's McKinley Wade, who had two goals and an assist on the day for a team-best three points, got William & Mary on the scoreboard with 16:02 remaining in the first half, but Aghazarian answered with her second of the day to make it 5-1 with 13:57 remaining in the first half. William & Mary then climbed back into the game with three straight, including Wade's second, before Osterdale took advantage of a Tribe penalty to score with 1:29 remaining, sending the Dragons into the break up 6-4.

Out of halftime, William & Mary made short work of that deficit. Zoe Boger scored twice, once off a feed from Wade, to tie the game with 25:13 remaining. Then, with 21:47 remaining, Abby Junior put William & Mary ahead for the first and only time on Sunday with her sixth goal of the year.

That goal sparked the Dragons, who found Thiele for her sixth of the year at the 17:20 mark to pull Drexel back even. Aghazarian followed to put Drexel back on top, and though the Dragons could not find insurance for more than eight minutes, the defense held William & Mary off the board. Drexel outdrew the Tribe 13-8 on the afternoon, with Eva Winiarski and Milan White each winning a game-best four. Winiarski added a pair of caused turnovers and two ground balls for the Dragons, while Carlee Ries made six saves. Drexel opponents have now failed to reach double figure goals in 10 of the team's 12 games, and no unranked opponent has scored more than nine goals against Ries and the Dragons.

With 6:17 remaining, Pelham-Lacey put the capper on her hat trick with her 22nd goal of the season, putting the Dragons ahead 9-7. Just over 90 seconds later, she fed Nihill to make it a 10-7 game. William & Mary got one back with 1:56 to play, but the Dragons gained control and again worked it to Nihill, whose third goal of the day provided the final margin and gave Drexel its first CAA win of the year.

Drexel has now split its first two league games, both on the road, and will have one more road game to play this season. The Dragons will visit Delaware on Friday at 6:00 p.m. before returning home to Vidas Field after more than a month on the road on Sunday to start a season-ending three-game homestand against Towson at 1:00 p.m.