by Eric Willuweit

Madison, Wis. - Despite outscoring the Edgewood Eagles 8-5 in the second half of their conference matchup Saturday afternoon in Wisconsin, the Illinois Tech women's lacrosse team could not overcome a second quarter in which the Eagles scored eight goals for a 10-5 halftime lead, eventually falling to Edgewood 15-13. The loss dropped the Scarlet Hawks to 0-2 in NACC play (2-8 overall). The Eagles improved to 1-1 in conference (3-5 overall).

The Scarlet Hawks were even after one quarter of play, with Kelly Hitchcock scoring a pair of goals in the opening quarter to draw the Hawks even at 2-2 heading into the fateful second quarter. After trading a pair of goals to start the second quarter, Edgewood scored four unanswered goals in less than three minutes to open up a 7-3 lead, and the Hawks found themselves trailing the rest of the match. 

Statistically, the Scarlet Hawks lead in almost every key category, except where it ultimately counted, on the scoreboard. Hitchcock paced the Hawks with seven goals, six ground balls and 17 draw controls. Faith Busche added four goals, two assists and three ground balls.

First Quarter (Illinois Tech 2 - Edgewood 2)

Hitchcock opened the scoring in the match with an unassisted tally at the 12:20 mark, giving the Scarlet Hawks their only lead on the afternoon. Natalie Skaife and Rachel Unitan scored 14 seconds apart midway through the quarter to give Edgewood a 2-1 lead, but Hitchcock responded with another unassisted goal at 5:30 to draw the Hawks even at 2-2.

Second Quarter (Edgewood 8 - Illinois Tech 3)

The fateful second quarter saw the Eagles and Scarlet Hawks trade goals in the opening two minutes, with Kendra Sanderfoot giving Edgewood a brief 3-2 lead before Hitchcock would score her third goal of the match to tie the score at 3-3. From that point, the Eagles outscored the Scarlet Hawks 7-2 the rest of the quarter, with Hitchcock and Judai Smith scoring a pair of goals sandwiched between a four-goal run and a three goal run by the Eagles. Edgewood entered halftime with a 10-5 lead.

Third Quarter (Illinois Tech 3 - Edgewood 3)

Illinois Tech would net two goals in the opening 5:27 of play, with Lucy Jorjorian and Busche both scoring on free position shots, cutting the Scarlet Hawks deficit to 10-7. The Eagles responded with three straight goals in the final 5:32, before Hitchcock scored her fifth goal of the match with eight seconds remaining in the quarter.

Fourth Quarter (Illinois Tech 5 - Edgewood 2)

Sanderfoot opened the scoring in the fourth quarter for the Eagles on a feed from Mackenzie Fruit at 13:59 for her fifth goal of the match, extending the Eagles lead to 14-8. Hitchcock would answer less than two minutes later with her sixth goal of the match at 12:08 (assist Busche). Emma Raup scored her fifth goal of the game at 10:29 for a 15-9 Eagles advantage. The Hawks would mount a furious rally in the game's final five minutes, with Busche scoring three times and Hitchcock once to pull the Hawks within two at 15-13. Unfortunately Busche's last goal at the 2:26 mark would be the final tally on the day for Illinois Tech, as a Busche free position attempt with 52 seconds remaining went wide, and Edgewood was able to clear the zone and run out the clock.

Scarlet Hawks Standouts

• Hitchcock with with 7 goals on 12 shots, 10 on goal, to go along with 6 ground balls and 17 draw controls.
• Busche with 4 goals, 2 assists and 3 ground balls.
• Lucy Kegley with 4 ground balls.
• Jorjorian with 1 goal and 3 ground balls.
• Smith with a goal, 2 ground balls and 3 draw controls.

Inside The Box Score

• Illinois Tech held a 23-9 advantage in draw controls.
• The Scarlet Hawks outshot the Eagles 37-29.
• Illinois Tech had a slight edge in ground balls, 30-27.
• Each team had 27 turnovers.
• The Scarlet Hawks were 4 of 9 on free position shots; the Eagles were 2 of 6.

Next Up

After seven consecutive road matches, the Scarlet Hawks finally make their return home to Stuart Field, when they face off against NACC foe Marian at 12:00 PM CT on Senior Day.