Score: Utica College 16, Elmira College 8
Records: Utica (5-3, 1-0 E8), Elmira (1-4, 0-2 E8)
Location: Charles A. Gaetano Stadium - Utica, NY

Utica, NY -- The Elmira College women's lacrosse team fell to 0-2 inside Empire 8 Conference play with a 16-8 loss to Utica College on the road Saturday afternoon.

The Pioneers opened the game on a 5-0 run sparked by their effort off the draw. After Utica took at 2-0 lead at the 24:24 mark of the first half, the Pioneers successfully won possession on the next two restarts and wasted little time on the attack, scoring twice in a span of less than two minutes.

Freshman attacker Hayley Baker '19 ended Elmira's scoreless drought at 12:17 in the first half with a free position goal. Although Utica won the ensuing draw and Rebecca Plunkett extended the lead back to five with her first of four goals on the day, Baker netted her second of the game to bring the Purple and Gold back within four with eight-and-a-half minutes remaining in the opening half.

Utica, however, put the game out of reach with 10 of the game's next 11 goals, once again using the draw to dominate possession. Already with a 6-2 advantage, the Pioneers' next four tallies were all scored on the possession immediately after winning the draw control.

Although Utica extended its lead to a game-high 13 goals with another 5-0 run to start the second half, Elmira's leading scorer, Moorea Spoljaric '16, refused to go down without a fight. The fourth-year talent found the back of the net four times inside the final 12 minutes of regulation, eventually cutting the home club's lead in half. Additionally, EC hockey standout Sarah Hughson '18 sandwiched a goal in the game-ending five-goal rally, her first since the conclusion of the women's ice hockey season.

Turning Point
Looking up and down the box score, the numbers were fairly even across the board. However, one stat that stood out amongst the rest today was draw controls. Utica controlled the majority of the draws this afternoon, winning 17 to Elmira's nine. The Soaring Eagles are 0-4 this season when opponents have won more draws. 

Inside the Box Score

• Utica held a slim 27-to-24 lead in shots, and a 22-18 advantage in shots on goal.
• Elmira won the turnover battle, committing 19 to Utica's 22.
• The Soaring Eagles converted on 14-of-16 clear attempts, while Utica went 11-for-24.
• Elmira recorded 25 ground balls, while Utica totaled 24.
• Utica controlled the draws, winning 17-of-26 chances.
• Spoljaric led the way with a game-high five points on a team-high four goals and one assist.
• Spoljaric added team highs with five ground balls, four draw controls, and three caused turnovers.
• Baker chipped in with two goals, while Marisa Carr '18 and Hughson added one apiece.
• Hughson filled out her stat line with three ground balls and a team-high-tying three caused turnovers.
• Payton Rusin '18 got the start in net and made one save in 13:37 of play.
• Lindsay Wargo '17 made her first appearance of the year in net and logged five saves in just over 46 minutes of action.

News and Notes

• Spoljaric's four tallies extended her scoring streak to 22 consecutive games.
• Spoljaric increased her career goal total 141, just six shy of moving into a two-way tie for second place in program history.
• Laura Powell '16 had one caused turnover today, bringing her career total to 63, which placed her in a two-way tie for fifth place in EC history.
• Spoljaric's three caused turnovers put her in a two-way tie for eighth place in program history for career caused turnovers (60). 
• Wargo made her first appearance of the season between the pipes for Elmira this afternoon.

Up Next
Elmira will look to turn things around next Tuesday, March 29th, when the Soaring Eagles return home for an Empire 8 showdown with Houghton College. Tuesday's contest is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. at EC's Campus Field.