LC runs past pair of Big East Foes

By Pete Theis Staff Writer

After a disappointing loss to Penn State two weeks ago, in which the team could only muster seven goals, the Loyola women's lacrosse team found their offense in a 20-6 rout of Cincinnati. Ten different Hounds scored in Loyola's largest margin of victory in five years.

"We played very hard today and we worked well as a unit," head coach Kerri O'Day said. "In the first half we played a little overly aggressive, but in the second half we began to … get easier plays, which led to easier scores."

Loyola wasted little time scoring as senior Kate Filipelli found the net with just one minute and 41 seconds into the contest off of a free-position shot. Freshman Grace Gavin added a goal, and Abby Rehfuss tallied the first of her five goals after a big rip down the pipe to increase Loyola's lead to 3-0.

After Cincinnati responded with a score, sophomore Emily Gibson put Loyola back on top by three. Rehfuss then broke an eight-minute scoreless stretch with a tally, which was followed by Gavin's goal off of a pass from Filippelli.

The Bearcats scored their second goal with six minutes remaining, but Loyola got another score from Rehfuss, who juked the goalie to find the right side of the net.

Right before the half, the Greyhounds added their name to the history books when they scored twice in eight seconds, the seventh fastest time in-between goals in Division I history. Filipelli scored the first goal with 11 seconds left in the opening period, and on the ensuing draw control Rehfuss hit Gavin with a pass, who fed sophomore Bridget O'Keefe. O'Keefe then went high to low, notching the second goal with just three seconds remaining.

Loyola didn't back down in the second half as Gibson started the scoring, followed by a pair of goals from senior Alicyn Brunnett, which put Loyola ahead 12-2 just three minutes in. Senior Courtney Arnold also got involved in the scoring as she took a pass from Gavin and found nylon, increasing the lead to 11. Rehfuss added her fourth goal off a free position, and tallied her fifth and final goal on a laser from outside the eight-meter arc. Filipelli added one of her three goals in-between Rehfuss' final surge.

"All week it was drilled into us to play well together as a unit and not just as individuals," Rehfuss said. "Today we definitely had a bunch of girls on the field working well together and on the same page."

The large lead allowed Loyola to play some of their less experienced players.

"A lot of players got some huge game experience today," O'Day said. "It was nice for them to get out and be able to play for a large period of the game."

Freshman Kelly Quinlan scored the first goal of her collegiate career, and junior Elizabeth Webber also got on the board. Senior Katie McHugh and junior Meghan Joines then closed out the scoring for Loyola.

On Sunday, the Hounds posted their fourth 20-goal game this season en route to a 21-18 victory over Louisville. Gavin contributed in a big way by scoring a career-high seven goals.

In the first half, Louisville jumped out to a big lead when they scored four straight goals in the first seven minutes of the contest. Loyola (5-7), however, found their offensive and answered with four goals of their own on scores from Rehfuss, two from Gavin and one from O'Keefe to tie the contest.

Gavin then added another goal on a free-position shot with just over four minutes remaining in the first half, and the Hounds never trailed again.

Filipelli gave Loyola a 9-6 lead late in the half, and the Cardinals would score once more before Rehfuss added the finishing touches on a 10-7 halftime lead.

After regrouping at halftime, Louisville got to work on offense, scoring the first goal of the second half to pull within two. Gavin, however, had different plans as she sparked the team with two more tallies before her teammates added five more goals, increasing Loyola's lead to 15-8.

The Cardinals then caught Loyola off guard and started a 5-0 run of their own to make it 15-13. Brunnett stopped the run, and from there on out Loyola and Louisville continued to trade goals. The turning point late in the game came when the Cardinals' Sierra Smith-Hart seemed to have scored, but she was called for an illegal follow-through and her goal was waved.

Gibson then scored the game's final goal with just 12 seconds remaining.

Rehfuss and Brunnett added four goals and three goals, respectively.

The Hounds travel to Mount St. Mary's on Wednesday at 3:35 p.m.