WLAX claims 19-15 win at Kennesaw State

KENNESAW, Georgia – The Marquette University women's lacrosse team roared back with 10 of the final 11 goals to defeat Kennesaw State, 19-15, on Saturday afternoon at Fifth Third Bank Stadium in Kennesaw, Georgia.

"I'm very proud of our team coming back," Marquette head coach Meredith Black said. " To score eight unanswered goals really showed a lot of fight and what we are capable of doing. We are looking to start strong in these games moving forward but I am definitely proud of the effort. Extra special recognition to Lindsey Willcocks, Jocelyn Miller and Sophia Leva, our backup goalie, as those three played very well today in the comeback. They were all solid for the second half and did a lot of good things for us. We're anxious to get back to practice and work towards a faster start."

The Golden Eagles (3-2) had four players achieve hat tricks as senior Grace Gabriel tallied six goals, graduate student Charlotte McGuire and senior Lindsey Willcocks notched four, and Cate Soccodato netted three.

MU went into halftime with a 10-6 deficit, mostly due to a successful free position campaign from Kennesaw State, which converted all six of their attempts.

Sophomore keeper Sophia Leva entered the game for the Golden Eagles towards the end of the first half with one minute remaining, and would turn the game around in the second.

Forty-five seconds into the second period, McGuire found the net from the top of the circle, which was then followed on the other end by the first free-position save from Leva. That stop immediately led to a Gabriel score, giving MU the spark it needed.

Leva would tally a total of six saves, surpassing her previous season high of four against Notre Dame on Feb. 8. In just over 30 minutes of game time, Leva surpassed Horning's single save and secured the Marquette win.

Marquette trailed by no more than four throughout the whole game, but endured a bitter fight until there were six and a half minutes remaining with Willcocks tying the game at 15 during a woman-up free position shot. MU would find the net four more times before the end of regulation, with junior Megan Menzuber adding her second of the day with 11 seconds remaining.

Marquette continues its seven-game road swing, heading to Columbus, Ohio to take on the Ohio State on Friday, March 1 at noon CT.