March 14, 2018
By Matt Paras
GREENSBORO, North Carolina — The Notre Dame women’s lacrosse team (5-4) faced another tough challenge on their road trip when it battled with High Point (4-2) Wednesday afternoon. After a back and forth first half of play, the Panthers used a 6-0 run in the second half to defeat Notre Dame 13-7.
How It Happened
Notre Dame and High Point exchanged blows in the first 30 minutes of play Wednesday afternoon. Neither team led by more than one goal in the first half, as both teams battled back and forth for momentum.
Maddie Howe scored two of the first three goals for the Irish with the other going to Katie Enrietto. Coming off her strong game against Virginia Tech, Savannah Buchanan was active again offensively. She assisted on two of the first three goals for the Irish.
High Point held a 4-3 lead with four minutes left in the half when the Irish came up with a pivotal play from Howe. As the Panthers were on the clear, Howe caused a turnover at midfield, scooped up the ground ball and beat the Panther goalie to tie the game at four. It was Howe’s third goal of the afternoon.
Both teams scored once more and it was a 5-5 game at halftime. Samantha Giacolone had a stellar first half in the cage, stopping nine of the 14 shots from the Panthers.
In the second half, High Point scored the first goal but the Irish answered right back. Jessi Masinko scored off the feed from Andie Aldave to tie the game at six with 22:34 left.
Following the Irish goal, the Panthers took control of the game, scoring six unanswered goals over a 15-minute span. Howe added another goal for the Irish in the final minutes but the Irish couldn’t mount a comeback and fell 13-7.
Stat Leaders
- Maddie Howe scored four goals to tie a career high. It is her third hat trick of the season.
- Samantha Giacolone finished with 15 saves on 27 shots for a .556 save percentage. It is her fifth straight game with a save percentage at .500 or higher.
- Giacolone recorded double-digit saves for the fourth time this season.
- Molly Cobb set a career high with four draw controls.
- Savannah Buchanan tallied two assists, her fourth multi-assist game of the season.
Up Next
The Irish return to campus to prepare for an ACC clash this weekend. Notre Dame hosts Virginia on Saturday at Arlotta Stadium with opening draw scheduled for 1 pm ET.
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Matt Paras, athletics communications assistant director at the University of Notre Dame, has been part of the Fighting Irish athletics communications team since January 2018. In his role, he coordinates all media efforts for the Notre Dame women’s lacrosse and cross country/track & field programs. A native of Warwick, Rhode Island, Paras is a graduate of the University of Louisville where he completed his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Sport Administration. Prior to arriving at Notre Dame, he worked at Vanderbilt University as the sports information contact for the women’s soccer and lacrosse programs.