Davidson claws past Liberty

The Lady Flames fell short in the Big South semifinals against the Wildcats, 17-8

Last straw — Liberty’s Chloe McIntosh played in the final game of her career against Davidson. Photo provided: Kamryn Reynolds

The Liberty Lady Flames (8-10) lacrosse season came to an end Friday, April 28, after a 17-8 defeat against the Davidson Wildcats (11-6) in the semifinals of the Big South Lacrosse Championship.

Despite the loss, the Lady Flames finished with their highest win total in team history and were encouraged by their performance throughout the
season.

“It was definitely an improved season, both in team performance and individual playing,” Liberty senior captain Amber Nichols said. “Our coaches pushed us to become better lacrosse players and a
better team.”

During the game, the Wildcats scored two goals in the first 45 seconds of the game and never looked back, eventually increasing their lead
to 6-0.

Kacie Fogle was finally able to find the back of the net for the Lady Flames, cutting the margin to 6-1.

After two more goals by Davidson, Nichols scored her first of three goals at the 15:57 mark, reducing the deficit to 8-2.

The Wildcats finished the first half strong with four unanswered goals to take a 12-2 lead heading into halftime.

Despite the large first half deficit, the Lady Flames continued to play hard in the second half, outscoring the
Wildcats 6-5.

“I honestly have no clue why it took our team that long (to get going),” Nichols said. “I think we were all kind of shocked at how we were playing in the first half and wished we knew what
the issue was.”

Liberty’s Nina Dunay scored her first of two goals to open the scoring in the second half, cutting Davidson’s lead to 12-3.

“My goal in the first two minutes of the
second half was a teameffort,” Dunay said. “It sparked momentum in the second half.”

The Lady Flames and Wildcats swapped the next give goals, including two scored by Nichols, bringing the score to 14-5 in favor of the Wildcats.

The Wildcats then responded with two more unanswered goals, extending their lead to a game-high 11 goals. The Lady Flames finished the game on a 3-1 run, bringing the final score to 17-8.

“We played as a unit for the seniors and ended the season strong as a team.” Dunay said.

After the Lady Flames most successful season in school history, they believe the future for the program is bright.

“We still have so much potential that hasn’t been fully shown,” Nichols said. “I believe next year’s team is going to show this even more.”

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *