FARMVILLE, Va.— A gritty effort for Longwood lacrosse came up just short against Stetson on Tuesday night.
 
Bailey Stratton led Longwood (0-5) with her first career hat trick, but Stetson (2-3) had five points from Miya Scanlan and four from Kaitlin Pani to edge the Lancers 9-8 at Elizabeth Burger Jackson Field.
 
SCORE:
               1             2             3             4             FINAL
STET      3             3             2             1             9
LWU      2             4             0             2             8
 
HOW IT HAPPENED:
 
The first two quarters featured a back and forth battle with both teams netting six goals, and neither side led by more than two. The two defenses made life tough for offenses early, forcing seven turnovers each in the first quarter alone.
 
Stratton gave Longwood a 2-1 lead in the first with her second goal of the quarter, but Scanlan answered to tie it up before finding Katie Kornacki one minute later for the Stetson lead.
 
However, Longwood responded in the second quarter with a crisp approach on offense. Ellie Rumbaugh tied the game less than a minute into the quarter, and Mikaela Cook gave Longwood a 4-3 lead. She then found Madison Rogers cutting to the cage for a 5-3 lead.
 
Stetson answered, and the two teams were knotted at six at the break.
 
After halftime, Stetson struck twice in the third, but Longwood refused to go away in the fourth.
 
Miranda Helfenbein trimmed the lead to one early, and Stratton did the same thing with two minutes to play on a free position that cut it to 9-8.
 
The Lancer defense frenetically pressed and forced a turnover with less than a minute to go, but Stratton was stopped on the doorstep by Stetson's Maddie Eckert.
 
Eckert was solid in the cage to earn the win for Stetson, making eight saves.
 
Cybella Smith took the tough loss despite making three saves and also snaring three ground balls and forcing two turnovers. Amelia Carlile was a brick wall in the first half and made eight saves in goal for Longwood.

WHAT THEY SAID:

"Tonight was a tough one for us. We were close," said Longwood Head Coach Dwayne Hicks. "We just didn't make the plays early in the game and then ran out of time. But I'm proud of the team for playing the whole game and fighting until the end. We'll need that kind of energy when we get to our conference games."

"Bailey had a good game for us," Hicks added. "She really showed up tonight and made the most of her time on the field. Both our goalies made plays in clutch situations. We just need more experence and it will start clicking. I am confident we will get there. I can see the difference and the potential. This is what non-conference games are all about."
 
UP NEXT:
 
The Lancers will stay at home to face the William and Mary Tribe, Saturday, March 8th, at 1 pm on ESPN+.