Lexington, Ky. - The Transylvania women's lacrosse team continued to assert themselves in the HCAC with another win, this time against the Hanover College Panthers, in a matchup between the top ranked teams in the conference. With the 2022 season winding down, Transy took care of business in their final regular season home game with a 14-5 triumph.
Early in the contest the Pioneers had ample opportunities but could not find the back of the net. After nearly eight scoreless minutes, the Panthers scored the first goal of the night, and continued to keep the aggressive Pioneers off the board. Hanover netted another at the 2:58 mark of the opening quarter, but Diana Bruder's tally just 14 seconds later broke the seal for Transylvania and unleashed what would turn out to be an 11 goal run.
With leading scorer Abbey Peterson out of the lineup, Transylvania relied on other options to provide a spark. It was the first-year midfielder duo of Bruder and Charlotte Green who took charge and led Transy throughout the night. In the second quarter Bruder and Green both scored twice, giving Bruder a first half hat trick. The Pioneers led 5-2 at the half.
Coming out of the break the first-year Pios showed no signs of slowing down, as Green scored three goals in the third quarter alone. Bruder buried another, as well as a goal from Mandi Rider, and Transylvania held a 10-2 lead with three quarters down.
At the 11:51 mark of the fourth Green capped off an 11 goal run from Transy with her sixth of the night. The impressive feat marks a new career high for the first-year, and matches Peterson's 6 goal game against Anderson on April 16th, for the most in a game this season.
After Transylvania's vigorous defense held the Panthers off the board for over 37 minutes, Hanover found life early in the fourth quarter with goals at the 10:34 and 8:53 marks. However, still ahead 11-4, Lindy Walker put one home shortly after and Rider added another with 4:41 to go. Hanover scored a final time late in the contest, but Rider tacked on another with less than a minute remaining, becoming her fifth hat trick of the season. The clock ran out, and Transy took the win, 14-5.
Besides the monster performances from Green (6 goals, 1 assist, 7 ground ball, 3 caused turnovers), and Bruder (4 goals, 1 assist, 7 ground balls), as well as Rider's hat trick, the Pioneers had strong execution across the board. Vianne Koshoffer set a new season high with a 3 assist game, and Walker's 6 ground balls are good for another season high for the senior. Goaltender Abi Waldron took the win, playing the entire game, and notching 7 saves.
Transylvania looks ahead to the weekend with a pair of road games against Earlham (7:00 PM, Friday) and Mount St. Joseph (4:00 PM, Saturday), before the HCAC Tournament begins.
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