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Florida Lacrosse had an exceptional defensive performance on Saturday afternoon which led to their 10-5 victory and a sixth consecutive win.
The Gators improved to 11-3 overall and 3-1 in the AAC on the season after beating the East Carolina Pirates at Donald R. Dizney Stadium. The Pirates went back home 10-5 overall and 3-1 in conference play. The Gators moved to second place in the American Athletic Conference.
Back at home ⚡️#FLax | #GoGators pic.twitter.com/OEnnyCcQHK
— Gators Lacrosse (@GatorsLAX) April 15, 2023
Gators Own the First Frame
The game opened up slowly. East Carolina posted their first of only five total goals to start but Florida’s Danielle Pavinelli showed up early with an unassisted goal to level the playing field 1-1.
The Gators owned the rest of the quarter with two unanswered goals from the sticks of Maggi Hall and Emma LoPinto. LoPinto snapped a sharp buzzer beater to end the quarter 3-1.
EMMA LOPINTO AT THE BUZZER!! 🚀
📷https://t.co/lDK30vPHP8 #FLax | #GoGators pic.twitter.com/6L2L7aigNt
— Gators Lacrosse (@GatorsLAX) April 15, 2023
Second Quarter, Same Story- Gators Own It
Both teams picked up the pace in the second quarter.
The Pirates opened up with two consecutive goals to even the score to 3-3. This fueled the Gators to kick up the tempo. Hall netted her second of the day.
The Gators then saw a new face on the scoreboard– Emerson Cabrera. By this time, the Gators had a 6-2 lead with under two minutes left in the half. LoPinto hustled in two more goals to close the half 8-3.
.@maggi_hall finds @emcabrera24 for the finish to make the score 6-3!
📺https://t.co/lDK30vPHP8#FLax | #GoGators pic.twitter.com/3p5lqtJQbT
— Gators Lacrosse (@GatorsLAX) April 15, 2023
Silent Third Quarter; Successful Fourth
The Gators held the Pirates to three points the whole third quarter despite the scoreless 15 minutes.
However, the fourth quarter looked much different with both teams scoring two points. Pavinelli saw the back of the cage first with an unassisted goal. Madison Waters followed with a shot handed by LoPinto to shift the score to 10-3. East Carolina scored the final two goals but it was too late at that point. The Gators finished the game 10-5 and had 12-caused turnovers.
Sarah with some BIG time saves yesterday 😤❌#FLax // #GoGators pic.twitter.com/5Lyn0GOivu
— Gators Lacrosse (@GatorsLAX) April 16, 2023
Sarah Reznick registered 11 saves and now sits second in program history for saves at 534.
Up Next
The stage is set for the Florida Lacrosse team to face off against Vanderbilt for their senior night on Saturday at Donald R. Dizney Stadium. If you can’t attend the game, you can catch the action live on ESPN+ at 12 p.m. EST.
