The No. 23 Clemson women’s lacrosse team defeated the Davidson Wildcats 19-10 at its brand-new lacrosse complex on Saturday, marking the Tigers’ first win of both the season and the first-ever win on the team’s own turf.
Freshman Regan Byrne scored Clemson’s first goal at the new facility, also marking her first collegiate goal. Byrne’s six goals on the day were one away from Clemson’s single-game record, which currently stands at seven goals, set by Hanna Hilcoff against Wofford last year.
The Tigers made a name for themselves last year as one of the most aggressive offenses in the nation, underlined by their No. 1 scoring percentage, No. 5 scoring margin and No. 6-ranked scoring offense. Clemson wasted no time carrying last year’s success over to this season, as eight different players scored against the Wildcats.
Byrne led the way with her six goals, followed by another four from attacker Claire Bockstie, a hat trick from Natalie Shurtleff, two from Kerrie Thornton, and one apiece from Hilcoff, Shannon Brazier, Summer Agostino and Alex Scialdone.
“It was just really fantastic and really great energy,” head coach Allison Kwolek said. “I love the fans here, the community here and I appreciate them coming out and supporting us. I’m proud of how the team came out today. Their effort was phenomenal all over the field and I love how we distributed the ball on the offensive end. It was a great way to start the season”
Although Davidson opened the scoring when midfielder Payton Cheedle snuck the ball past Clemson goalie Emily Lamparter, the Tigers’ defense clamped down the rest of the way. Clemson scored six unanswered goals in the first quarter– half of which came from Byrne – before the Wildcats found the net again late in the opening quarter. Nonetheless, the Tigers proceeded to score another five unanswered shortly thereafter.
Clemson’s defense had a few slip-ups, though not for lack of coverage. Sophomore defender Paris Masaracchia, who was named to the ACC All-Freshman team following her rookie campaign, was fouled several times for invading shooting space in the eight-meter. With her sitting out in the penalty box, the Wildcats used their man advantage to score twice.
Midfielder Bella Karstien dominated on both sides of the field in both 1-one-1 coverage and transitioning up the field as part of the Tigers’ midfield unit, complimented by Shurtleff and Brazier. Senior midfielder Ella Little, who led the team in draw controls last season with 108, took the first of the match before sitting out the remainder of the game as transfers Ariana Kline and Megan Halczuk took over.
Next up for the Tigers is a road game to Furman on Feb. 14 at 6 p.m. Clemson will return home to play Coastal Carolina next weekend on Saturday, Feb. 17, at noon.
