It was a roller coaster week for West Chester University’s women’s lacrosse team, one that saw them honored at the Wachovia Center, and ended with a devastating loss to Mercyhurst College.West Chester opened the week with a 23-10 victory on the road against PSAC East rival East Stroudsburg on Monday.
Attacker Jackie Baker and midfielder Claire Grimwood each continued their impressive seasons. Baker scored five goals and added two assists in the contest, while Grimwood found the back of the net three times and assisted on four other goals.
The Golden Rams got off to a flying start, and held a 15-6 lead at the half.
Nicole Haines (4 goals, 1 assist), Julia Walsh (2 goals, 3 assists), Chrissy Stokes (2 goals), Courtney Whiting (2 goals), Gina DiDomenicis (2 goals), Gabrielle Stitz (1 goal) and Katy Crouse (2 goals, 2 assists) rounded out the offense for the Rams.
In net, Mary Beth Green made three saves in 50 minutes, while allowing nine goals. Brittany Barnes replaced Green and played the final 10 minutes, recording two saves against one goal against.
Next up, the Golden Rams scored an impressive road win against another conference rival Millersville, on a rainy Thursday afternoon.
WCU led by a score of 7-3 at the break, before exploding for 10 goals in the second half on route to a decisive 17-5 win.
Whiting led the Rams’ offense in the game with four goals. Haines, Grimwood and Shannon Hayes each scored a hat trick and added an assist.
Stokes, meanwhile, scored twice and assisted on two others.
Baker scored one goal and assisted on two others, while DiDomenicis added a goal of her own.
Green came up big when called upon in goal. She made seven saves, playing the entire game.
WCU’s leading goal scorer, Whiting, was named the PSAC East women’s lacrosse player of the week on Tuesday. It was the second time this season that she has received the honor.
Over the course of the week, Whiting scored six goals, picked up four ground balls and recorded eight draw controls.
In addition to Whiting’s individual award, the entire Golden Rams team was recognized for their accomplishments during last season’s championship run.
The event was held at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia.
West Chester closed out their busy week at Mercyhurst, where the Rams fell by a final score of 11-9. The loss snapped the team’s 26-game winning streak.
The Rams got off to a fast start, opening up a 5-0 lead in the game’s first 11 minutes. From there the team’s traded leads, with Mercyhurst eventually getting the best of the top seeded Rams.
Whiting, Baker and DiDomenicis each scored two goals and added one assist in the game. Stokes, on the other hand, managed two goals while Haines netted the Rams’ other goal of the day.
In the nets again was Green who made eight saves in the losing effort.
West Chester looks to bounce back from the loss this week as they make their home debut on Wednesday at 4 p.m. against Kutztown. This is the first of six consecutive home games for the Lady Rams.
*Note: Sunday’s game against Gannon University did not finish in time for this edition of The Quad.
Colin McGlinchey is a fourth-year student majoring in English with a minor in Journalism. He can be reached at CM646588@wcupa.edu.