Eagles Vanquish Vassar, Move to 5-0 on the Year

HUNTINGDON, Pa.- The Juniata women's lacrosse team blanked visiting Vassar College in the second half to lock up a 14-4 victory on a windy Monday afternoon at Gibbel Stadium. 

Grace Gibbs had four goals, two assists, two ground balls, three draw controls, and four caused turnovers, while Kyndall Yeager tallied four goals, an assist, a ground ball, and a caused turnover. Peyton Goodrich had four goals, an assist, five ground balls, six draw controls, and four caused turnovers. Skyler Stevens added two goals, an assist, and a ground ball, while Caoilinn Heatley made ten saves to get the win in goal.

Goodrich got things started for the Eagles as she sliced through the defense and beat the keeper forty seconds into the game. The Brewers found an answer less than a minute later, but the Eagles responded with four goals in four minutes as Yeager struck twice, Gibbs added one of her own along with assisting one of the Yeager goals, and Goodrich scored on a free position shot. Vassar scored in the final minute of the first as Juniata led 5-2 after one. 

Three minutes into the second, Stevens, isolated on the left side of the defense one-on-one, scooted past her defender and fired a shot into the top of the net. Stevens was the provider a few minutes later. Standing behind the goal, she found Yeager cutting down the middle. Yeager caught and fired in one motion to push Juniata ahead by five. Less than a minute later, Goodrich juked her defender out of the way and beat the keeper to make it 8-2. Two Vassar goals bookended another Stevens tally as the Eagles led 9-4 at the half.

Juniata scored twice in the third and three times in the fourth while holding Vassar to 12 shots in the second half. Heatley denied the three on target as she pitched a second-half shutout. 

The Eagles will travel to take on Misericordia University on Saturday at 1:00.