FARMVILLE, Va. – Longwood women's lacrosse found itself in a dogfight on Saturday afternoon. Fortunately, Riley McDonald powered home four second half goals, and Holly Hill capped the fourth quarter comeback for a 12-11 win.
 
McDonald had two in the fourth quarter as the Lancers (8-9, 5-3 Big South) outscored Gardner-Webb (0-17, 0-8 Big South) 3-1, and the defense pounced on a turnover to help kill the clock late.
 
The win put Longwood above .500 in Big South play, and the team is headed to the Big South Tournament next weekend.
 
TOP LWU PERFORMERS:
Riley McDonald: 6G, 1A, 2GB, 2DC, 2CT
Sophia Passa: 3G, 1A, 1GB, 5DC, 1CT
Miranda Helfenbein: 6GB, 2DC, 3CT
Claire Libby: 1G, 4GB
Cybella Smith: 10 SV, 11GA
 
HOW IT HAPPENED:
 
Gardner-Webb jumped out to an early lead behind back-to-back goals from Emma Duchscherer, but McDonald and Sophia Passa combined for three straight to give Longwood the lead.
 
Howevver, GWU's defense combined with goalkeeper Emma Anderson, who made a career best 18 saves, to limit Longwood for the rest of the half. Rebecca Ferrina keyed the Runnin' Bulldogs to a 6-4 advantage behind two goals of her own.
 
McDonald gave Longwood a lift heading into halftime. The senior, who came in ninth in the nation in free position goals per game, slotted home a free position with one second to go in the half to cut the lead to one.
 
McDonald then fired home two in the third, and Passa added one more, to give the Lancers a 9-8 lead. Passa had a hat trick of her own on the day.
 
GWU bounced back to take the lead with three straight goals, including Duchscherer's fifth of the game for an 11-9 lead.
 
McDonald leveled the score with back-to-back strikes in the first half of the fourth quarter. That set the stage for a gritty finish. Emily Cate Smith feathered a pass to Hill, who was streaking to the goal, and Hill didn't miss. In the process, it was Smith's 100^th career assist.
 
WHAT THEY SAID:
 
"What an awesome way to end the regular season in front of a great crowd," said Longwood Head Coach Kylar Ferguson. "Special thank you to our seniors for an exciting one on a very special day in Farmville. Go Wood!"
 
UP NEXT:
 
Longwood heads to Mercer to open the Big South Tournament on Friday, May 3. Longwood will enter as the four seed, the team's first postseason appearance since 2019, and the team will take on top-seeded Mercer at 3 p.m.
 
#GoWood #HorsePower