RIVER FALLS, Wis. – The UW-River Falls women's lacrosse team put together a commanding home opening performance Friday evening, defeating Cornell College 16-2.
The Falcons set the tone early with seven first-quarter goals to take full control of the contest. Anna Plath opened the scoring off an assist from Avery Watzke, and River Falls never looked back. Watzke added two first-quarter goals of her own, while Elizabeth Clough, Natasha Berthiaume, Samantha Hayek, and Macy Patton all found the back of the net in the opening 15 minutes.
River Falls continued its offensive pressure in the second quarter, scoring four more times. Watzke connected twice again throughout the frame while Samantha Hayek also netted two goals in the period. The Falcons carried an 11-1 advantage into halftime.
The third quarter saw three more Falcon goals. Samantha Hayek completed her four-goal performance while Clough added two more to secure her hat trick. Cornell added its second goal late in the third, but River Falls maintained a 14-2 lead heading into the final frame.
Natasha Berthiaume and Kinlee Knutson each scored in the fourth quarter to cap the 16-2 victory.
Offensively, River Falls was led by Samantha Hayek and Avery Watzke with four goals apiece. Watzke also dished out an assist for a five-point day. Elizabeth Clough added three goals, while Berthiaume finished with two goals and one assist. Kinlee Knutson, Macy Patton, and Anna Plath each contributed a goal.
The Falcons outshot Cornell 48-5 and held a 36-4 advantage in shots on goal. River Falls also won the ground ball battle 39-23 and forced 41 Cornell turnovers while committing just 19 of its own.
In goal, Annelise Rommeck earned the win, allowing two goals and making one save in 45 minutes of action. Abby Hammond played the final frame and recorded a save.
With the win, the Falcons improve to 1-2 on the season.
