WILLIAMSBURG, Va. (March 12, 2014)—Squaring off against a top-10 team for the third time in its opening five games, the William and Mary lacrosse team fell to No. 6 Virginia, 22-9, at Martin Family Stadium at Albert-Daly Field on a rain-soaked Wednesday evening.
W&M (1-4) was in striking distance at halftime and trailed just 9-5, but the Cavaliers (3-4) opened the second stanza with a 13-2 run to pull away for the victory.
The College held a 16-13 advantage in ground balls, but UVA outshot W&M, 39-20, and owned a 20-13 margin in draw controls.
Seven different Tribe players combined to score the team's nine goals, as junior Ellen Shaffrey totaled three points (2g, 1a) and senior Taelor Salmon found the back of the cage twice. Senior Jenna Dougherty (1g, 1a) and junior Kaleigh Noon (1g, 1a) also contributed two points apiece, while Dougherty added a team-high three draw controls.
The College opened the contest well and tallied the first two goals in the opening 1:34, as junior Amanda Johnson and sophomore Zoe Boger both recorded scores. Johnson's goal came on a free position opportunity just 33 seconds into the game, while Boger found the back of the cage with an unassisted score a minute later.
Although UVA answered with a pair of goals, the Tribe reclaimed the lead on a score by Salmon with 23:17 showing. However, as a steady rain began to descend on Albert-Daly Field, the Cavaliers closed the opening half on a 7-2 run to build a 9-5 lead at the break.
A goal by Shaffrey off an assist from Noon with 21:30 remaining ended a 4-0 spurt by Virginia to open the second half, but the Cavaliers then rattled off a 9-1 run during the next 20 minutes to add to its lead.
W&M scored twice in the final minute with goals by Noon and Dougherty but were unable to get any closer than the final margin.
Courtney Swan led Virginia with eight points (4g, 4a) and a game-high seven draw controls.
The Tribe will return to action when it hosts Virginia Tech on Saturday at 1 p.m. The Hokies will be the Tribe's fourth opponent from the Atlantic Coast Conference this season.
