No. 5 Florida Lacrosse’s Late Spurt Falls Short At No. 18 James Madison

After being down by six heading into the fourth quarter, the Florida lacrosse team seemed to have let the game slip away. However, six straight goals in five minutes opened the door for a comeback attempt. 

Still, the Gators’ late spark was dimmed when No. 18 James Madison (4-1) kept the deficit at one to defeat No. 5 Florida 17-16 on Saturday in Charlotte, N.C. 

Attacker Frannie Hahn had a career-best performance to spearhead the drive for Florida (3-2). The redshirt freshman tallied two goals and two assists in just the fourth quarter. Hahn had 10 points at the end of the day, recording seven goals and three assists. 

Her performance tied for second in all-time single-game scoring in Gators’ history, with the record set at 11 points by Ashley Bruns in 2012 and Sydney Pirreca in 2019.

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Freshman attacker Clark Hamilton followed in second with five goals, achieving her third-career hat trick. 

Overall, Florida shot 36 balls with 32 on goal, compared to JMU’s 30 shots with 28 on goal. 

The Gators’ struggles laid in their defending, causing three goalkeeper changes throughout the game. After conceding four goals in the first quarter, graduate student goalkeeper Georgia Hoey was replaced by redshirt junior Elyse Finnelle.

Despite this change, Finnelle allowed 11 goals off 17 shots, causing her to be subbed out in the third quarter. 

Freshman goalkeeper Susan Radebaugh was Florida’s key. In the final 21 minutes of the game, she allowed only two goals and made three saves. 

Meanwhile, Dukes’ senior goalkeeper Adanya Moyer saved 16 of the Gators’ 32 shots on goal. 

On the offensive side, JMU junior attacker Maddie Epke and freshman attacker Olivia Matthews each achieved hat tricks. Epke led the Dukes with four goals and also secured 17 draw controls, compared to Florida’s 11 total.

Matthews followed behind with three goals, while six other Dukes also contributed in the scoring column. 

In the first quarter, Florida started strong, tying 4-4 with James Madison. However, the Dukes responded with six goals in the second quarter for a 10-6 lead entering halftime. 

Matthews began the third quarter with three consecutive goals, leading to JMU outscoring UF 6-4. 

After JMU junior midfielder Lauren Savage opened the final period with a goal, the Gators responded with six consecutive goals of their own.

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This spurt was no match for Moyer, as she protected the net from a last-minute goal and maintained the Dukes’ one-point lead.

Up Next

Florida returns home to take on Loyola University Maryland (3-2) on Saturday at noon. 

 

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