Syracuse University
6-1, 1-0
Virginia
4-2, 0-1
Treanor, Donahue Lead Orange By Cavaliers in ACC Opener
3/5/2016 3:44:00 PM | Women's Lacrosse
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Senior Kayla Treanor scored six goals and sophomore Riley Donahue dished out four assists to lead the No. 2 Syracuse women's lacrosse team to a 14-8 victory at No. 7 Virginia. It marks the third straight season that the Orange has opened ACC play with a win against the Cavaliers.
Syracuse (6-1) never trailed as it jumped out to a 2-0 lead. A pair of goals by senior Gabby Jaquith helped the Orange to a 4-2 lead, but Kelly Boyd's goal at the 8:14 mark cut the Cavaliers' deficit to 4-3. Freshman Nicole Levy answered 12 seconds later with her second goal of the day, sparking the Orange on a 3-0 scoring run to the end the first half. Donahue followed Levy's goal with her 13th of the season and then assisted on Treanor's second goal of the day with 12 seconds on the clock to give the Orange a 7-3 halftime lead.
Redshirt sophomore Taylor Gait continued Syracuse's scoring streak 1:06 after intermission to extend the lead to 8-3, but Virginia (4-2) responded with a 5-2 scoring run of its own to get the Cavaliers within two at 10-8 with 17:09 remaining. Treanor halted the Virginia offensive outburst with an unassisted goal at the 15:30 mark. Gait and Donahue followed with unassisted goals before Treanor put the game out of reach with her sixth goal of the afternoon off an assist from Halle Majorana for the 14-8 final.
Treanor's six goals are a season high and increase her career total to 228. She now ranks third on Syracuse's career goals scored record list, moving past Alyssa Murray '14, who 226 goals from 2011-14. Donahue tied her career high with four assists and finished with a season-best six points.
Syracuse graduate student Allie Murray tied her season high with six saves to go along with three ground balls, while Rachel Vander Kolk had nine saves for Virginia. Kasey Behr led the Cavaliers' offense with three goals.
The Orange outshot Virginia, 26-22, and picked up 12 ground balls to 11 for the Cavaliers. Treanor again led Syracuse with seven draw controls, helping the Orange to a 14-10 advantage in the circle.
A rematch of last year's NCAA Tournament national semifinals is next for Syracuse when it hosts No. 1-ranked and defending national champion Maryland on Saturday, March 12 at noon.
