WISE - - Second half offensive scoring woes plagued UVA Wise in the school's women's lacrosse opener at Smith Stadium Saturday. Visiting Lee limited Meghan Dennehy's squad to one second half goal, erasing a halftime deficit, to post a 13-10 victory.
Lee (1-2) trailed 10-8 when Sydney Trask scored her fifth goal of the game for UVA Wise (0-1). From there, it was all Flames.
Dariana Blanton cut the lead to one with 17:56 remaining before Kelsey McGowen tied the game almost two minutes later.
Blanton gave the visitors their first lead since the first 10 minutes of the game when she scored unassisted with 15:15 to play.
The score would remain 11-10 until 8:38 to play when Lee extended its lead to two on a goal by McGowen. The Flames put the game out of reach when Britney White made it a 13-10 game with 3:19 left.
Shots on goal proved difficult for UVA Wise in the second half. The Cavaliers mustered just five shots on goal over the final 30 minutes. The hosts turned it over far more in the second half as well, UVA Wise committed 16 second half turnovers after turning it over nine times in the first 30 minutes.
A Jesse French goal with just over 10 minutes to play in the first half allowed the Cavs to take a 7-4 advantage, it was the team's largest lead of the day.
Trask had a hat trick less than 18 minutes into the game. The hat trick was the second of the sophomore's career while the four goals marked a new career-high.
French also netted a hat trick in the loss. The fifth-year senior tallied three goals, handed out an assist and picked up four groundballs.
White's goal put the game out of reach, but it was her work on draw controls that may have been crucial. She finished the game with 11 draw controls to aid Lee to an 18-to-8 advantage in the category.
Blanton finished with a team-high four goals as the Flames overcame 27 turnovers.
For UVA Wise, the team will have to wait at least a week to play again. Tuesday's game with Lander has been postponed due to COVID-19 protocols. The team's next scheduled game is Feb. 27 when Young Harris College visits Smith Stadium. First draw set for 3 p.m.
