NORFOLK, Va. (Feb. 20, 2019)—The William & Mary lacrosse team earned its second consecutive victory to open the 2019 season with a lopsided 17-10 win at Old Dominion on Wednesday evening.
 
Although the teams traded a pair of goals early, W&M (2-0) broke the game open with an 8-1 run during the final 20 minutes of the first half. Freshman Belle Martire helped fuel the run with three of her game-high four goals during the pivotal stretch.
 
The Tribe began the second half with a pair of goals by Meredith Hughes to extend the margin to 12-3 with 27:39 remaining.
 
Although ODU (0-4) responded with a 4-1 run to narrow the gap to 13-7 midway through the second half, W&M countered with three unanswered goals of its own to reclaim a nine-goal advantage.
 
The Monarchs closed the game with three of the final four goals but was unable to get closer than the final margin down the stretch.
 
Tribe Standouts
Martire's four goals highlighted a contingent of three Tribe players who recorded hat tricks, as Meredith Hughes (3g, 1a) and Anne Milwicz (3g, 1a) both found the back of the cage three times and posted four points apiece. Maddie Torgerson also came up big offensively with three points (2g, 1a).
 
Defensively, Beth Kuyk and Grace Ahonen totaled three caused turnovers apiece, while Kuyk added five ground balls for the second-consecutive contest.
 
Freshmen Starr Howard and Lauren Russell led the Tribe on the draw circle with six and four, respectively.
 
Goalie Elsa Rall totaled eight saves.
 
Inside the Numbers
W&M outshot ODU, 33-20, and owned advantages in draw controls (18-10) and ground balls (16-14).
 
In addition to three W&M players posting hat tricks, nine different Tribe players scored at least one goal.
 
The Opposition
Glory Johnson led the Monarchs with four goals, while Sophia Richie (3g) and Lilly Siskind (1g, 4a) also played well offensively.
 
Alyssa Sebesto totaled a team-high five caused turnovers and four ground balls, while Kerri Caruso added a team-best four draw controls.
 
Notes
Seven W&M players combined to score the squad's 10 goals in the first half … The Tribe has posted a shooting percentage of at least .500 in both its first two games … W&M improves to 36-12 all-time against ODU and has won nine of the last 12 matchups … The Tribe improves to 38-24 all-time versus teams currently in the Big East Conference.  
 
Up Next
The Tribe will look to extend its season-opening winning streak to three games when it hosts No. 12 Virginia at Martin Family Stadium at Albert-Daly Field next Tuesday at 5 p.m.