Tyler Leachman scored the game-winning goal on an eight-meter shot with 9.3 seconds left to complete the No. 7 Virginia women's lacrosse team's come-from-behind 12-11 victory over the No. 3 Loyola Greyhounds.
Leachman drew a foul after more than two minutes of possession by the Cavaliers (11-3) in the Loyola (12-2) end. Leachman, Amy Appelt and Courtney Young had taken shots in the sequence leading up to the game-winner but failed to beat Greyhounds goalkeeper Cindy Nicolaus, who started the second half in place of Kim Lawton.
Appelt said she had complete confidence that Leachman would score her second goal of the game in the final seconds.
"I definitely thought she was going to make it," Appelt said.
Loyola started the game out strong, taking a 3-0 lead under four minutes in, but the Cavaliers responded with five of the next six goals over a 13-minute stretch. Ashleigh Haas got Virginia on the board on an eight-meter shot after Appelt drew a foul but briefly had to leave the game due to injury.
Greyhounds midfielder Jaclyn Borrone responded to Haas' goal and restored Loyola's lead to three, but Leachman, Appelt, Caitlin Banks and Courtney Young scored in succession to give the Cavaliers their first lead at 5-4.
Loyola did not quit, however, and went on a three-goal spurt that gave the Greyhounds a 7-5 edge at halftime.
In what may have been the game's turning point, Virginia's Banks controlled the draw to open the second half, streaked down the right side of the field and uncorked a bullet over Nicolaus' outstretched stick into the top corner of the net for her second score of the game.
Under a minute later, Loyola's Greene completed her hat trick on an eight-meter shot to restore a two-goal margin. After Appelt scored her second of the game, Shacklock netted her hat trick and restored the Loyola lead to two.
With time winding down, senior attacker Banks, playing in her last home game, made the plays to draw Virginia even. On a scramble in front of the Greyhounds' net with less than 18 minutes left, Banks gathered a loose ball in midair and popped it in, completing her hat trick and cutting the deficit to one. Six minutes later, Banks chased Nicolaus from the Loyola crease and created a turnover, duly converted by fellow senior Morgan Thalenberg to tie the score at nine.
A timeout by Greyhounds coach Kerri Johnson attempted to stem the tide, but 21 seconds later, midfielder Kim Connors gave the Cavaliers a 10-9 lead on a play directly flowing from a draw control.
Once again, Loyola did not fold and regained the lead at 11-10 with 8:15 left on Borrone's third tally and a goal from midfielder Jen Schuerholz.
At this point, according to coach Julie Myers, Appelt came over to the Virginia bench and asked for the ball. Although she was stopped by Nicolaus on an eight-meter shot with six minutes left, she continued to assert herself and tied the game with 3:19 left on a laser from the top of the circle.
The Cavaliers' Nikki Lieb won the ensuing draw, a statistic Virginia dominated 17-8 in the game, including 9-3 in the second half, eventually leading to Leachman's goal. Lieb also won the draw after the goal to run out the clock.
The Cavaliers will look to carry the momentum of beating what Myers called "the best team we have played all season" into Monday's clash with Virginia Tech.
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