ANGOLA, Ind. – The Trine University women's lacrosse team came up just short of visiting Alma College in a tightly contested 16-14 loss.
The Thunder pulled ahead to start the contest, going on a 5-2 run over the first eight minutes of the game. Sophomore Brooke Hoag was set up by classmate Calista Richmond for the first goal of the day just 29 seconds into the game. Richmond also set up the second goal this time with junior Nikki Hibler scoring.
After two Alma goals, the rest of the run came on goals from Hoag and juniors Alyssa Keptner and Danielle Gargiulo. Two were on free position opportunities while the third was naturally unassisted.
The three-goal lead was the largest of the night for Trine, with the Scots responding to the early run with the final three goals of the first quarter. The score was 5-5 at the first break.
After Alma opened the second with their first lead of the day, the Thunder scored three straight again to make the score 8-6 at the halfway point of the quarter. Keptner scored her second to start the run with Hoag scoring her third next and sophomore Courtney Rhodes finishing off.
The Scots responded with their own streak of three goals to make the score 9-8 in their favor as the game entered halftime.
Trine went on to tie the game twice in the third period, but were never able to retake the lead in the game. Freshman Elizabeth Larson scored the first goal of the half to secure one of those ties. Later on, Keptner and Rhodes scored back-to-back to secure the second tie of the quarter. Rhodes also scored the final goal of the third to keep the team within one as they headed to the fourth with a score of 13-12.
Gargiulo and Keptner each scored in the fourth quarter, but Alma scored three to build the score to 16-14.
Keptner led the way for the team offensively with four goals with Hoag and Rhodes each finishing with three. Richmond had a team-high four assists in the contest.
In net, sophomore Maddy Kasten finished with 14 saves and a team-high seven groundballs despite recording the loss. Rhodes led the way with four caused turnovers and Hoag had 14 of the team's draw controls.
Trine falls to 5-5 overall and 2-3 in Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) play following the loss. The team will continue their season when they travel to face Saint Mary's College for another MIAA contest. The match is scheduled to start at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, April 25.