HARRISONBURG, Va.-The in-state women's lacrosse rivalry between Virginia and James Madison is known for its close, intense games. But last night, it was anything but typical as the No. 9 Cavaliers blew past the No. 12 Dukes, 15-6.
Off the first draw, Duke junior Kristen Dinisio sliced a goal past Virginia's Liz McCarthy for the first score of the game. But after that, the Dukes (6-4) did not put up much of a fight. The Cavaliers (7-4) answered Dinisio's goal with a 4-0 run to take a lead they would not relinquish.
"Even though they scored the first goal, I think we really stuck it out," Virginia coach Julie Myers said.
Cavalier senior midfielder Mills Hook sparked the Virginia run with her first goal of the evening. She ended the game with five goals and two assists.
"She went hard and her shots were going," Myers said.
Junior Gina Sambus, a tough defensive player, had a surprisingly productive day on attack with one goal and one assist to add to her field presence.
The Cavaliers also got strong play from freshman Caitlin Banks, who finished with three goals and one assist.
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Banks "had a nice game," Myers said. "She came up with some key draw controls and lots of really important ground balls. She went hard to goal whenever she had it in her stick. She's really a great possession player, that's why we kept her on the field."
Virginia opened its largest lead of the game after Cavalier sophomore Lauren Aumiller scored a free-position shot to put Virginia up, 12-3, but James Madison refused to go quietly. A goal from Dinisto and two from McNevin Molloy pulled the Dukes closer, but the deficit was too great to overcome.
"I was proud of the fact that they brought themselves together at the end to make it somewhat dignified," James Madison coach Jennifer Ulehla said.
"They turned it on a little bit too late," Myers said.
Both teams struggled in the second half as the field got slippery. Virginia's ground ball pickups were the most obvious casualty.
"We definitely went through a 10-minute period where we just couldn't possess the ball and they were pressuring on us a lot which made it more difficult," Hook said. "We just couldn't get the ground balls and towards the end we started slipping."
Virginia sisters Lacey and Lauren Aumiller combined for the most spectacular play of the game. As time ran out, Lauren dished a quick pass to her older sister, and Lacey fired it in with one second remaining.
While the victory was a huge morale boost for a Virginia team that has struggled in tough games this season, James Madison did not perform up to its usual standards.
"We are an inexperienced team and we got caught with our eyes wide open," Ulehla said. "We seemed scared."
Myers attributed the victory to a mental toughness in her team.
"We wanted to win and I think that we wanted to do it together. Everyone who stepped onto the field was ready to do whatever it took."
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