The Elon University women’s lacrosse team played No. 6 Duke University in the team’s first game as an official NCAA Division I program on Friday, Feb. 7. The Phoenix created chances, racking up goals from four different players, but that was not enough to defeat the top-notch Blue Devils who won 25-4.
The starting lineup consisted of 12 freshmen, speaking to the youth of the team. On the attack Elon tallied 13 shots on goal and won 11 draws in the game. On the defensive side, the Phoenix finished 7-of-11 in clear attempts and picked up 11 ground balls throughout the game. Freshman goalkeeper Rachel Ramirez played all 60 minutes between the pipes and finished with a game-high fives saves.
The veteran Blue Devil offense was resilient, peppering the goal with 40 team shots throughout the game. The attack put 25 shots in the back of the net, lead by Kerrin Maurer who had six goals and Kelci Smesko with three.
But the Phoenix answered back minutes later with a goal by Elon freshman attack Sloane Kessler to even the score, 1-1. Kessler’s goal was unassisted and will go in the books as the first goal in Elon women’s lacrosse history.
The Blue Devils then took off on an 11-goal run that put them up 12-1 in the first period. That run was broken up by Elon freshman attack Anna Vitton who scored unassisted with 2:30 left in the period.
Another goal by Duke put the Blue Devils up 13-2 at the half.
Duke controlled possession for the majority of the game, opening the second period with a 12-goal run and the defense holding up the Elon attack in the transition game.
Elon proved they were going to fight until the end scoring the final two goals of the game. Elon freshmen Bailey DeMuth and Paige Lorton registered their first collegiate goals in the final 30 seconds of regulation. DeMuth netted a free-position shot with 24 seconds left in the game followed by Lorton who added another free-position goal for the Phoenix with six seconds remaining in the game.
On the day, the Blue Devils outshot the Phoenix 40-13 and won 20 draw controls to Elon’s 11.
Overall, Elon created chances and will spend the next week building off their success as they prepare for their home opener. Elon will take on the Longwood University Lancers it its first home game next Friday, Feb. 14, at 4 p.m. in Rhodes Stadium.