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Mia Fiandaca about to shoot against Aurora Feb. 28, 2024
© AshtinElder
17
Winner Ill. Wesleyan IWU 3-2
6
Puget Sound UPS 2-2
Winner
Ill. Wesleyan IWU
3-2
17
Final
6
Puget Sound UPS
2-2
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Ill. Wesleyan IWU 3 5 5 4 17
Puget Sound UPS 1 0 2 3 6

Game Recap: Women's Lacrosse |

Women’s Lacrosse Wins Third Straight to Conclude West Coast Trip

Titans boost record to 4-2

PORTLAND, Ore. - The Illinois Wesleyan University women's lacrosse team wrapped up its spring break trip with its third straight win Thursday night, March 14, as the Titans defeated University of Puget Sound, 17-6. IWU boosted its record to 4-2 on the season, while Puget Sound slipped to 2-3.

Offensively, five different players recorded multiple points on the night. Senior Britney Maldonado (Hoffman Estates, Ill.-James B. Conant), hot off her record-setting performance, finished with 11 points on three goals and eight assists. Junior Mia Fiandaca (St. Charles, Ill.-St. Charles North) was the most common beneficiary of Maldonado's precise passing, as she nearly matched her record-setting goal total from two nights prior. Fiandaca notched seven goals and an assist to finish with eight points. 

Sophomores Sadie Newton (Bloomington, Ill.-Normal Community), Carleigh Fountain (Orland Park, Ill.-Carl Sandburg), and Devon Hanson (Waukesha, Wis-Waukesha West) tallied two goals apiece. 

Hanson finished with a team-leading seven draw controls, while Newton added five, and Fountain finished with four. 

Junior Bri Kiser (Crown Point, Ind.-Crown Point) was strong in goal, making six saves with six goals allowed as she moved to 4-2 in between the pipes this season. She also added three ground balls. 

Freshman Bri Steil (Peoria, Ill.-Dunlap), Fountain, and junior Avery Setzler (Bloomington, Ill.-Bloomington) tied for the team lead with three ground balls apiece. Newtown paced the Green and White with four caused turnovers, while Hanson, Fountain, and Fiandaca forced three each.

In all, IWU recorded a 32-15 lead in shots and a 24-15 edge in ground balls. The Titans also held an 18-10 edge in caused turnovers, winning the turnover battle by a 24-16 tally. Illinois Wesleyan finished 15-for-18 in clears to Puget Sound's 13-of-20 effort.

Kiser cracked open the game with a save to shut down Puget Sound on its first possession.

Hanson worked around the Loggers defense before slinging a sidearm shot that found the back of the net to put the Titans on the scoreboard first at the 10:10 mark. Continuing her torrid Pacific Northwest trip, Maldonado did the same wraparound on the defense to notch her first point of the contest, as IWU saw a 2-0 lead with 8:57 remaining in the first. 

A Puget Sound goal cut the lead back to one, but Maldonado found Newton on a cut, who buried a shot while diving to end the first quarter of action, as Illinois Wesleyan finished with a 3-1 lead in the low scoring quarter. 

Gaining the ball in its defensive zone, the Titans quickly cleared the zone, as Hanson received the ball from sophomore Sarah Riepe (Aurora, Ill.-St. Francis) at the 50-yard line and dished the ball to Fountain for a successful clear. Fountain quickly maneuvered down past the Loggers defense to register her first goal of the contest, upping the score to 4-1 with 12:58 remaining in the half. 

A big Kiser save set up the Titans next goal quickly, as Maldonado fed Fiandaca on a cut to push the lead to four with 10:52 left to play, forcing Puget Sound to call a timeout. 

The timeout did not slow the Titan offense down, as Hanson won the draw to regain possession. After handing the ball off to Fountain, she quickly raced down and found a gap in the defense to fire a shot and record her second goal of the night.

Facing a Loggers free position, Kiser stepped up and recorded the save, and snagged the bouncing ball to maintain the Titans' momentum. Following a few hustle plays to keep possession with IWU, Hanson spun around two defenders to open up a scoring opportunity, ripping her first goal of the night to extend the Titan lead to six. 

Maldonado found Fiandaca for another goal to close out the second quarter of action, as Illinois Wesleyan took an 8-1 advantage into halftime. 

Illinois Wesleyan needed just 22 seconds to find its first goal out of the break as Maldonado raced around a defender and fired a shot into the back of the net. The goal, which put IWU up 9-1, came on the heels of a draw control from Hanson that sent the Titans off and running from the opening whistle.

The Green and White tacked on three more goals just 20 seconds apart. First, Maldonado cashed in on a free position for her third goal of the night with 12:57 on the clock. Then, Fiandaca scored off a Maldonado dish following another draw control from Newton with 12:47 on the clock. The third came with 12:36 left in the period as a Hanson draw led to another Maldonado to Fiandaca score.

Puget Sound broke up IWU's 10-0 scoring run with a goal of its own with just under 11 minutes remaining in the quarter, but Illinois Wesleyan punched right back. Hanson won the ensuing draw and quickly fired down field to Newton, who passed off to Fiandaca. The junior quickly hit senior Hannah Trousdale (Mt. Prospect, Ill.-Hoffman Estates) on a cut in front of goal for the score to give IWU a 13-2 stronghold.

Leading 13-3 with 15 minutes to play, the Green and White used three goals from Fiandaca and another by Newton to roll to a 17-6 victory.

With its three-game west coast swing complete, Illinois Wesleyan will return to competition at home Wednesday, March 20. IWU will take on Calvin University in a non-conference game at Tucci Stadium. Game time is set for 7 p.m.
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