CHICAGO- The No. 8 Denison women's lacrosse team defeated Saint Mary's (Ind.) 17-2 on Sunday in the second round of the 2021 NCAA Division III Championship from Stagg Field at the University of Chicago. With the win, Denison advances to the third round (Sweet 16) which will be hosted by Washington and Lee University on May 15.
Denison (10-1) got off to a fast start, scoring six goals in the first six minutes of play to take a commanding 6-0 lead. Jane Bailey started things off with a goal 35 seconds into the contest while the next five tallies came from Molly Fischer, Ryann Yospa, Casey McTague, Fisher and McTague.
With 2:54 remaining in the first half, McTague scored her fourth goal of the opening period, activating the continuous clock thanks to Denison's 10-0 lead.
In the second half, Denison outscored the Belles 7-2 to close out the 17-2 victory. McTague scored two more goals in the second period to finish with six goals and one assist on nine shot attempts.
Charlotte Godfrey had a big day on defense for the Big Red. She totaled six ground balls, three draw controls and two caused turnovers. Fischer scored three goals while Bailey ended with two goals and three assists.
Caroline O'Dea played the first 40 minutes and finished with three saves while facing three shots on-goal. Maeve Caldwell played the final 20 minutes and posted one save.
Saint Mary's was making its first appearance in the NCAA Tournament. Their season comes to an end with a 13-5 record. Belles goalie Emily Kraker finished with 15 saves while facing 32 shots from the Big Red.
DU held a 47-10 advantage in shots and the Big Red defense limited Saint Mary's to a .500 clearing percentage while causing 12 of their 25 turnovers.
Denison will face the winner of the Carroll (WI) and Aurora second round match that will be played at 3:30 p.m. That Sweet 16 contest will take place on Saturday, May 15 in Lexington, Virginia at a time to be determined.
This is the Big Red's third-consecutive Sweet 16 appearance and the program's sixth all-time.
