NEWS RELEASE
April 11, 2024
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Noah Pohl, Communications Writer
HARRISONBURG, VA – The James Madison Women’s Lacrosse team defeated the Temple Owls 14-10 this past Saturday on April 6, 2024.
The dukes advance to 10-3 on the season and 3-0 in conference play. Still sitting at 12th in the national rankings, it will fuel the fire of the team: hoping to make there way up in the rankings.
The Saturday afternoon game verses the owls began with a surprising start, the dukes were losing 4-2 at the end of the first quarter. The game stayed severely close throughout the remainder of the game: after the second quarter it was tied 6-6, after the third quarter the dukes led 10-9 and finally JMU pulled ahead 14-10 for the victory.
On offense, the seniors and lower classman showed out against Temple. Sophomore attacker Maddie Epke scored five times. She also collected eleven of JMU’s draw controls: tying Maddie McDaniel’s single-season draw control record of 127. Katelyn Morgan had four goals for herself and Senior, Isabella Peterson had two goals to add to her strong Senior Campaign.
On defense, the seniors and lower classman also performed well. The star freshman Ava Bleckley secured four ground balls and cause two turnovers. Maggie Clark, the Redshirt-junior midfielder added two ground balls of her own and also caused two turnovers. Nicholle Marshall didn’t want to be left out of the impressive stats, and since it was Senior Day, she recorded three turnovers for her Senior Campaign.
The Temple Owls performed well against a strong JMU team, it’s important to highlight that Mackenzie Roth and Bella Mastropieri both scored five times each. The both of them contributed to all the goals scored by the owls.
“I think my dodges could have been better, but I wasn’t very successful. So, I just focused on other girls. It doesn’t really matter who gets the goals in the end as long as we come out with a win so I think it definitely opened up some opportunities for some other girls.” Said senior Isabella Peterson in a Breeze Article.
The 12th-ranked Dukes (10-3 overall, 3-0 in conference play) are set for another away game as they travel to Gainesville, Florida, to take on the 10th-ranked Gators (12-2 overall, 3-0 in conference play) this Saturday, April 13th, with the match kicking off at 11:30 a.m. This AAC matchup will be available for streaming on ESPN+.
About JMU Women’s Lacrosse
JMU Women’s Lacrosse is a NCAA Division 1 contender for the National Championship every year. The dukes are a part of the American Athletic Conference and joined for the 2023 season. Head coached by Shelley Klaes, the dukes having a winning mentality, leading to their past and recent success.
For more information, https://jmusports.com/sports/womens-lacrosse