FARMVILLE, Va. – High Point remained unbeaten in Big South play, improving to 3-0 with a 19-7 win over Longwood women's lacrosse on Wednesday evening.
 
The Panthers, who entered the game first in the Big South averaging 13.20 goals per game including 40 goals in their opening two Big South wins against Campbell and Winthrop, were led by the reigning Big South Offensive Player of the Year Abby Hormes, who tallied a game-high six goals on seven shots. The Tewaaraton Award Watch list senior has now scored 21 goals in just three conference games, and leads the Big South with 47 goals in just 11 games.
 
Fellow upperclassman Ashely Britton added seven points, scoring four goals with three assists for the three-time defending Big South champions. The graduate senior now has 47 goals and 10 points in 11 starts. Kaely Kyle also added a hat trick with three goals, as eight different Panthers found the back of the net.
 
For the Lancers, Emma Johnson and Dana Joss each tallied two goals to lead the team. Joss added four draw controls to lead the team. Five players scored for Longwood, including Ainsley Rowlison, Nicole Fordyce, and Logan Ward. 
 
However, that was all the offense the Lancers could muster against the stiff High Point defense. The Panthers entered the game ranked fourth in the nation with 11.38 caused turnovers per game, and added 11 more on Wednesday. High Point also secures ground balls at an impressive rate, ranking seventh in the nation with 21.25 per game and added 20 more against the Lancers. Megan Nerney lead High Point with four ground balls, while Sarah Zeto and Jill Rall combined for seven saves in net, each playing 30 minutes.
 
Hannah Tirrell and Claire Libby led Longwood with four ground balls apiece, while the pair combined for three caused turnovers. The starting backline of Tirrell, Rachel Abraham, and Lauren Cerretani totaled four caused turnovers and seven ground balls, as High Point committed 16 total turnovers. In goal, Kylee Wright made 11 stops for the Lancers.

"High Point is a talented team overall, but their two senior midfielders can dominate a game on their own," said Longwood head coach Elaine Jones. "Defensively, we just didn't match up well one-on-one with their ability to get to goal. Kylee [Wright] once again stood tall in goal, saving multiple shots, and our defense generated several solid defensive stands.

"Unfortunately, we lost momentum and experience when Dana [Joss] got her second yellow card at the start of the second half. Dana had a strong 1st half and her absence left a discernable void on the draw, defensive, and offensive end where we were already short- handed today. Despite those setbacks, the team still worked hard to cause turnovers and battled to the end. I would still like to see us continue to cut down on our turnovers. That will certainly be one of our goals going into the next game."

The Panthers came out of the gates firing, scoring the game's first seven goals over the first 8:34 of action. Britton had an early hat trick during this stretch, while Hormes and Kyle each added two apiece.
 
The Lancers responded with a run of their own, scoring the next three to get within 7-3 with 16:18 to play. Fordyce broke the ice for the Lancers, while Johnson and Joss followed with goals over a 2:55 stretch.
 
However, High Point regained the momentum to end the half, scoring five of the next six goals to end the first half with a 12-4 lead. Five different players scored for the balanced Panther attack during the closing run, while Joss added her second goal of the game for Longwood.
 
The teams traded goals to start the second half, each scoring a pair of goals over the first 6:40 to hold the High Point lead at eight goals, 14-6. However, the Panthers went on a game-sealing 4-0 run from 21:44-18:43 to extend their lead to a game-high 12, 18-6. Both sides added late goals, bringing the final to 19-7. Joss, a member of the preseason All-Big South team, picked up her second yellow card early in the second half, as the Lancers were forced to play the rest of the way without their do-it-all midfielder. 
 
The Lancers will end their 2021 home slate on Saturday, April 17 when they host Gardner-Webb. The game will serve as senior day for the Lancers, as they honor their six-member graduating class of Taylor Blenckstone, Riley Hayden, Emma Johnson, Jade O'Connor, Hannah Tirrell, and graduate senior Dana Joss.
 
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