UVa women's lacrosse team upends No. 7 Loyola

Behind the stellar play of Ainsley Baker and Josie Owen, the Virginia women’s lacrosse team started the season off in the right fashion with a 14-9 upset win over No. 7 Loyola on Saturday afternoon.

It was a sweet victory for the Cavaliers, who had lost to Loyola each of the past two seasons.

“I think it’s great. We’ve been working since September to get ready for this opening game and really trying to carry it throughout. The girls did a great job. They were prepared. They worked really hard to get this win today,” Virginia coach Julie Myers said. “The past couple of years, they have really had our number. They wanted to make sure they had the better half of Loyola this time.”

Virginia was in a hurry to prove its dominance and struck first when Courtney Swan connected with the goal with a barely a minute off the clock. Baker followed suit, with an assist from Owen, notching her first goal less than a minute after Swan’s opening point.

It didn’t take long for Loyola to respond, and the rest of the initial period saw both teams battle for control of the scoreboard. While the Cavaliers maintained control of the ball for the majority of the half, they also committed nine turnovers. With less than a minute left in the period, Owen scored a goal and Virginia led 6-5 heading into the half.

“At the half, we felt that the score was a little closer than it felt. We really needed to keep working on the little things and earn those draws,” Myers said. “We felt that we were in a little bit better shape and a little faster. We wanted to use those two things to our advantage.”

The opening minutes of the second period were dominated by Baker and Owen. With connections from Owen, Baker had three unanswered goals as Virginia took a 9-5 advantage.

“We were on a run. One of things we have emphasized is keeping that run going. If you break, you can’t let them go back and score a goal,” Baker said. “Josie knows if she comes up the right side of the crease that I am going to back door. It happens almost every time. I felt like we had a string connected to each other. It is one of those things that has developed over the years. Obviously it worked out pretty well today.”

With momentum firmly on the Cavaliers’ side, Liza Blue and Charlie Finnigan put up three more scores before Loyola’s Molly Hulseman finally found the net. The Greyhounds found a rhythm in the final 10 minutes of the game, but the damage was already done.

Despite finishing with 17 turnovers, the Cavaliers benefitted from dominating draw controls, finishing the game with 18 to Loyola’s seven. Kim Kolarick had a strong afternoon in the goal, notching 11 saves.

Myers couldn’t be happier with her team’s opening performance.

“To see the girls play pretty well consistently throughout was just exactly what we needed. A lot of players made big plays,” Myers continued. “We really stayed composed throughout the course of the game and that is something we really needed to see.”

Baker finished with a game-high five goals. Blue, Finnigan, and Jess Loizeaux added two apiece. Owen, with a goal of her own, added six assists.

Hannah Schmitt led Loyola with three goals.

Virginia continues play on Wednesday with a home matchup with Richmond. Myers is not overlooking the Spiders, a talented team that has played Duke and UNC.

Added Myers: “We need to make sure we’re scoring more often, putting more shots on goal. We can always do a better job of grabbing off of our goalkeepers. Everything can get a little better. Richmond is a very good team. We’ll have a couple of days to prepare for them, which will come in handy.”