WLAX earns 20-5 victory over Kent State

MILWAUKEE - The Marquette women's lacrosse team (4-4, 0-0 BIG EAST) defeated Kent State 20-5 on Saturday afternoon in its first home game since the season opener on Feb. 12.

Shea Garcia paced the Golden Eagles with six goals, which ties a career high. Kyra LaMotte added four goals, and Emma Soccodato, Mary Schumar, Meg Bireley and Elise Smigiel all chipped in two. Schumar also supplied a team-high five assists.

"Our energy today was really positive and really contagious right from the start. We were ready to go," said Marquette head coach Meredith Black. "We were all willing to do whatever it took to get the job done. Our defense played great in the first half, and we had the mentality that we weren't going to let anything get through."

Garcia got off to an incredible start, scoring all six of her goals in the first 8:31 of action. The Golden Eagles went on to score eight in the first quarter, jumping out to an early seven-goal lead.

With the Golden Eagles taking a 10-goal lead early, the clock started running at the 9:49 mark in the second quarter, and ran until the final whistle.

MU took a commanding 15-1 advantage into the break thanks to six goals from Garcia, three from LaMotte and two from Schumar and Smigiel. The 15 goals are tied for third-most in a single half in program history.

Amanda Rumsey and Brynna Nixon split time between the pipes and combined for seven saves against the Golden Flashes (2-78, 0-3 MAC). Rumsey finished with a .800 save percentage, while Nixon notched a .429 mark.

Marquette also finished with a season-high 12 assists, coming within two of matching the program record. The victory was a team effort, as 31 of 37 players saw action.

On the game, MU took 35 shots while limiting the Golden Flashes to 21.

Kent State (2-7, 0-3 MAC) was led by Jackie Wolford who finished with two points on a goal and an assist.

UP NEXT:
The Golden Eagles will travel to San Diego to open up a two-game road trip against San Diego State on Tuesday at 5 p.m. CT.

Keep up with the Marquette women's lacrosse program all season long through social media by following on Twitter (@MarquetteWLax) and Instagram (@MarquetteWLax) and `liking' on Facebook (/MarquetteWLax).