• Samantha Brown (3g, 3a) and Erica Perrotta (2g, 3a) led the Panther offense
• The HPU defense shut out the nation’s No. 2 goal scorer (CU’s Loren Day) in the game
• With the victory, HPU advances to the Big South title game for the third time in four years
ROCK HILL, S.C. – The High Point University women’s lacrosse team (13-5) will advance to its third Big South title game in the last four years after a 19-6 semifinal victory over Campbell (10-9) on Thursday night in semifinal action.
HPU jumped out to a 4-0 lead and held a 13-3 edge at the half. The Panthers enjoyed a large advantage in shots (27-16) and posted an excellent 4-of-5 mark (.800) from the free position.
Defensively, the Panthers forced 12 Campbell turnovers and held the nation’s No. 2 goal scorer, Loren Day (3.72), to zero in the contest. HPU also limited the country’s No. 10 scoring offense (19.78 points/game) to just 10 points in the game.
“I love this team and I’m thrilled that our season will continue Saturday,” head coach Lyndsey Boswell said. “It’s evident when watching our girls play how much they enjoy competing with each other. Campbell is a very good team and I’m proud of our girls’ effort tonight.”
The Panthers were bolstered offensively by a pair of 6-point efforts. Junior Samantha Brown tallied three goals and three assists on the night while sophomore Erica Perrotta chipped in two goals and registered a career-high four assists.
In addition, freshman Samantha Herman tallied a hat trick and registered four draw controls in the game, while senior Emily Meier tallied four points on two goals and two assists against the Camels.
Senior Natalie Devine set a new career high with three goals in the second half, while senior Allie Foard tallied two goals while becoming the sixth student-athlete in program history to hit the 100-goal milestone. Fellow senior Kristina Renner also chipped in two goals, two caused turnovers and three draw controls for the Panthers.
Freshman Molly Andrews played 54 minutes in the cage and allowed just six goals while making five saves. Freshman Victoria Lomangino played the remaining six minutes and tallied a save for the Purple & White.
Two goals each from Perrotta and Herman in the first eight minutes helped the Panthers jump out to a 4-0 lead at the 21:47 mark of the first half.
Campbell responded with a pair of scores to cut the lead in half (4-2), but the Panthers rocketed back with a 5-0 run to build a 9-2 edge with 6:43 to go in the stanza. The run included two goals from Brown and single scores from Herman, Meier and Foard.
After a Campbell goal moved CU within six (9-3), HPU closed the half on a 4-0 run to take a 10-goal lead (13-3) into the break. The surge included the 100th goal of Foard’s career and a nice score from sophomore Darla Poulin.
Renner scored the first two goals of the second half to extend the HPU lead to 12 (15-3) and the Panthers remained in front by 12 (17-5) after Devine’s second goal of the half at the 11:31 mark.
HPU will now battle Winthrop Saturday at 1 p.m. for the tournament title. The game will be broadcast nationally on ESPN3.