WALLA WALLA, Wash. After just 13 seconds Whitman women's lacrosse was on the scoreboard with a one-goal lead over visiting University of Puget Sound Sunday afternoon.
Things would get no better for the Loggers who surrendered the game's first seven goals on the Blues' way to a 20-3 Northwest Conference victory on Senior Day at the Whitman Athletic Fields.
Olivia Engle was the game's initial goal scorer, racing downfield quickly after teammate
Nina Moore had won the opening draw control.
Six other Whitman players would go on to score during the season's final game, led by
Hannah Miller's seven goals.
Sunday's contest was all Whitman, all game long.
The Blues led in shots (37-10), ground balls (11-6), draw controls (18-4) and successful clearing attempts (100 percent vs. 60 percent). They also had fewer turnovers (14-10), and needed senior goalkeeper
Kate Whittingham to make just five saves after limiting the Loggers to only eight shots on goal.
Puget Sound was valiant in their push back, trying to hold off the seemingly never-ending Whitman attack. But it was not able to entice turnovers when it did force the Blues to cycle its attack rather than exist on a fast-break offense.
And when with the ball, the Loggers were unable to maintain enough possession to stop Whitman from springing onto the counter-attack -- surrendering 13 caused turnovers to Blues defenders.
By halftime Whitman had forged a 12-2 lead as Miller and
Lindsay Schwartz netted four goals each, with Engle,
Sage Ali,
Ali Pope and
Isabel Regonini scoring once apiece.
The attack became more deliberate after recess, but that just meant the Blues would be stretching deeper into the 90-second possession clock while seeking sure-fire scoring opportunities.
Whitman notched the second half's initial six goals on its way to such a gain in possession time that the Loggers actually got off two fewer shots (4) in the final 30 minutes than they did in the opening half.
Moore scored her two goals during the final half of play, Miller added three more, Schwartz picked up two more, and Regonini would add one more to her day.
Prior to the game both Whittingham and
Emma Bishop were honored as departing seniors, the team's first four-year players since the program began play in 2015.
The senior duo has seen the Blues rise from a two-win opening campaign in 2015, to consecutive winning seasons and second-place finishes in the final league standings.
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