COLUMBUS, Ohio – The James Madison Dukes broke open a 4-3 game at the end of the first quarter and went on to defeat Ohio State in women’s lacrosse action, 16-7, Saturday afternoon in Harrisonburg, Va. JMU is now 5-1 on the season with its only loss coming to No. 1 North Carolina, while Ohio State falls to 4-3.
JMU, the 12th-ranked team in the country, outscored Ohio State, 12-4, from the second quarter on to take the victory in only the second meeting between the schools.
Jamie Lasda had two goals and three assists to lead the Buckeyes with Caly O’Brien also netting a pair of goals, along with five draw controls. Casey Roberts, Jamie Level and Nicole Ferrara scored Ohio State’s other goals. Regan Alexander and Claire Morris split time in goal for the Buckeyes and combined for seven saves.
Team-wise, JMU led in both shots, 32-23, and shots on goal, 23-13, and was a near-perfect 13-of-14 in clears while committing nine turnovers to Ohio State’s 14.
First Quarter
Ohio State played a fine first quarter, coming back from a 4-1 deficit to make it 4-3 after the first 15 minutes with back-to-back goals by Jamie Level and Caly O’Brien to end the scoring. After JMU got on the board, Casey Roberts scored unassisted for Ohio State’s first goal of the game. Ohio State had 10 shots to JMU’s nine, but JMU led with six shots on goal to Ohio State’s five.
Second Quarter
Only two goals were scored through the first 10 minutes, both by JMU, and the Dukes added two more within a 24-second span at the four-minute mark to build their lead to 8-3. Ohio State’s Caly O’Brien stopped the JMU run with an unassisted goal at the 3:18 mark. The Dukes came right back with two more goals, also within a 24-second span, to build the lead back to 10-4 at the intermission. Shots were decidedly in JMU’s favor: 12-2.
Third Quarter
JMU tallied the first three goals of the quarter before Ohio State was able to counter with back-to-back goals by Jamie Lasda and Nicole Ferrara. Lasda’s was her ninth goal of the year and Ferrara’s was her team-leading 18th. Each assisted on the other’s goal.
Fourth Quarter
The Dukes added two fourth-quarter goals and Jamie Lasda capped the scoring with her second of the game, with :09 on the clock, to close out the 16-7 contest.
Game & Seasonal Notes
Up Next
Big Ten Conference action begins this week. Ohio State will host Michigan at 6 p.m. Thursday at Ohio State Lacrosse Stadium in the first of a three-game homestand that includes games against Colorado (March 12) and Johns Hopkins (March 18).
