The No. 19 Georgetown women’s lacrosse team (3-0, Big East) completely dominated Drexel (1-2, CAA) on Saturday winning 16-5. Senior attacker Morgan Ryan led the way for the Hoyas with four goals, while fellow senior attacker Taylor Gebhardt added three more for her third hat trick of the season. Junior midfielder Natalia Lynch also had a hat trick of her own.
Georgetown blitzed the Dragons from the start, with junior attacker Michaela Bruno scoring after 2:16. Senior goalkeeper Haelle Chomo made a couple saves to keep the Hoyas in the lead before Ryan scored on the next offensive possession and sophomore midfielder Mary Pagano put in two free position shots to take a 4-0 lead before nine minutes of game time was up.
“We move the ball very well. We went for the easy looks and not trying to force things, so I think that really showed today on the offensive side,” Ryan said.
Drexel got a goal to get on the board, but the Hoyas followed up with another 5-0 run in the following ten minutes. Ryan, Bruno, and Lynch all scored within three minutes of Drexel’s goal before junior midfielder Liza Liotta gave the Hoyas an 8-1 lead halfway through the half. Gebhardt scored at the 10:11 mark before Drexel finally answered. Lynch added a second, giving the Hoyas their 10th goal of the half, but Drexel scored the last goal before the break, taking advantage of a Georgetown turnover and scoring in transition. It was their only transition opportunity of the game though, a point that head coach Ricky Fried had emphasized during the week of practice.
“They have some good athletes that can get up and down the field. I thought we forced them to play seven really well,” Fried said. “We didn’t give them any transition opportunities.”
Georgetown’s dominance extended beyond the scoreboard, outshooting the Dragons 22-9, controlling 10 of 14 draws, winning four of six ground balls, and taking better care of the ball with only four turnovers to Drexel’s seven. The Hoyas continued to press their dominance into the second half.
Ryan continued the onslaught just 21 seconds into the second half, completing her hat trick. Gebhardt scored two more goals by the 15:13 mark, sandwiching another goal from Ryan. Drexel made it 14-4 with 13:02 to play, but Lynch became the third Hoya with a hat trick at the 8:08 mark before freshman attacker Celia Walsh scored her first ever Georgetown goal with 6:04 to go. Drexel got one more consolation goal, but it wouldn’t matter as Georgetown cruised to the 16-5 victory.
The team will head on the road to face No. 14 John’s Hopkins (2-1, Big 10) on Wednesday afternoon, the second ranked team the Hoyas face this season. For coverage of the game, as well as the rest of Georgetown’s athletic programs, follow @GUVoiceSports on Twitter.
