The men’s and women’s lacrosse teams both defeated Charles Street rival Johns Hopkins on Saturday at Ridley Athletic Complex. The No. 11 women’s team topped the Blue Jays 16-7 in their season opener to start 1-0, while the No. 16 men’s team improved to 1-1 in their home opener with a 10-7 victory.

The women’s team more than made up for a slow start, rallying from a three-goal early deficit then dominating in the second half, scoring 15 of the game’s final 18 goals.

Livy Rosenzweig ‘21 led the team with six points (two goals, four assists) along with eight draw controls. Jillian Wilson ’22 added all four of her goals in the second half, and Emily Wills ’23 scored three goals and two assists in her first collegiate game. 

Elli Kluegel ‘21 also had four points with two goals and two assists. On the defensive end, Kaitlyn Larsson ’21 made 11 saves in goal. The Hounds dominated on draws with an 18-7 advantage.

Hopkins jumped out to an early lead with four goals in the first ten minutes. With a 4-1 deficit at 19:04, Loyola started a five-goal run, including two goals from Sam Fiedler ‘21.

The two teams traded goals after that, with the home team leading 7-5 at halftime. The Greyhounds’ pace of play appeared to change in the second half, as they scored five straight after allowing one goal early in the second half. 

Leading 12-6 with 11:33 to go, Hopkins converted on a man-up opportunity to stop the Hounds’ scoring run. This would be their last goal of the game, however, as the Loyola offense took up the rest of the time with three long possessions, all ending in unassisted goals from Kluegel, Rosenzweig, and Wills.

Wilson scored her fourth and final goal with 13 seconds left on a man-up opportunity, making the final score 16-7. 

The women’s team will stay at Ridley for a mid-week matchup against Towson starting at 4:00 p.m.

The men’s team featured some dominant performances on both sides of the field. Kevin Lindley ’21 led the offensive attack with four goals, and Sam Shafer ’21 made 15 saves in goal. Bailey Savio ’21 gave the Hounds the possession advantage, going 12-20 on face-off attempts with eight ground balls. The Greyhound defense gave up just four goals through the first three quarters and forced seven turnovers. 

Other big contributors on offense included Aidan Olmstead ’21 with two goals and one assist, while Canadian recruit Adam Poitras ’23 added the same stat line in his second game with the Hounds. 

Johns Hopkins scored the first goal of the game, but the home team responded with three straight, including two unassisted goals from Lindley. Loyola would hold onto the lead for the rest of the game. 

Hopkins pulled to within one at 4-3 in the second quarter, but Joey Kamish ‘23 found Lindley for the early hat trick, giving the Greyhounds a 5-3 halftime lead and the momentum.

Loyola scored the first three goals of the second half to take a commanding 8-3 lead, with the scores coming from Olmstead, Poitras, and Lindley. Meanwhile, the Greyhound defense held the Jays to just 10 shot attempts through almost the entire first three quarters.

Peter Swindell ’20 continued the scoring run with his first goal with 13:36 left in the fourth quarter, then long pole Ryan McNulty ’20 scored from distance on a fast break to make the score 10-4.

Hopkins would start a brief comeback with three goals in the span of 1:31, but the Loyola defense withstood the attack and settled in for the rest of the quarter. The Jays would add one more goal with 1:34 to go, but Loyola made one more defensive stop to hold on for a 10-7 victory.

The men’s team takes on Rutgers next Saturday at Ridley Athletic Complex. Face-off is at noon.

Featured Image Courtesy of Loyola Athletics.