FARMVILLE, Va. – Longwood women's lacrosse's first home game of 2021 was a high-scoring affair, but William & Mary outlasted the Lancers in a 22-16 slugfest on Saturday afternoon.

The Tribe was led by VaSID All-State First team and reigning CAA scoring champion Belle Martire, who racked up seven points in a five goal, two assist performance while also leading her team in draw controls (8), and ground balls (3). The versatile attacker now has 19 points through four games, including an eight goal, 10 point performance against Old Dominion on Feb. 24.
 
She was matched by Dana Joss, the do-it-all Lancer midfielder who also tallied five goals, adding a team-best six draw controls and a 2-for-3 mark on free position shots. Four Lancers scored multiple goals in the team's season-high offensive output, including Taylor Blenckstone who notched a season-high four goals in a five-point day. Emma Johnson picked up her third hat trick of the season with three goals and a team-high five ground balls, and Nicole Fordyce added a pair of goals with two assists.
 
However, the high-scoring Lancers were outpaced by the potent William & Mary (2-2) offense, which saw 11 players tally goals on Saturday afternoon. Four tribe attackers recorded hat tricks, including Sabrina Schrader who notched four goals and six draw controls. Lauren Russell and Lond Simonides each added three goals apiece, as Simonides also led the team with three assists.
 
"The players came out of the gate with a lot of energy and really battled hard today," said Longwood head coach Elaine Jones. "To go from only scoring three goals against Richmond two days ago to putting up 16 today shows that we have the ability to score goals, so that was a nice confidence booster.
 
"I thought Dana, Emma, and Taylor played really well and carried the team today with their offensive production and hustle up and down the field."
 
The game opened with the two offenses trading blows, as the first 23 minutes of game action featured five lead changes and four ties. Dana Joss' goal at the 7:01 mark capitalized the early offensive frenzy, giving Longwood an 8-7 first half lead.
 
The Tribe responded with a critical run to close the opening period, opening up a 5-0 run over the next four minutes to take a 12-8 lead with 2:58 in the half. Joss again found the back of the net with a minute remaining to get Longwood within three, but Martire quickly answered 29 seconds later to give the Tribe a 13-9 lead at the break.
 
William & Mary carried that momentum into the second half, taking control with a 5-1 run over the opening 12:28 with goals from five different players to take an 18-10 lead. The Lancers would rally late, scoring the last three goals of the match in the closing minutes but ultimately fell 22-16 to a Tribe team whose only two losses have come at the hands of ranked opponents.
 
"We had a lot of great connections on offense and worked well in transitioning the ball, but unfortunately we also had lapses where our mistakes allowed William & Mary to get easy scoring opportunities," added Jones. "Once they got the lead, those easy goals we gave up allowed them to stay just out of our reach during the 2nd half.
 
"Once we get both offense and defense working consistently at the same high level for the entire game, we will be successful."
 
The Lancers will continue their home stand on Saturday, March 13 when they host George Washington, with the opening draw scheduled for 4 p.m.

#GoWood