Lady Flames Win in Record-Setting Fashion
4/10/2015 12:00:00 AM | Women's Lacrosse
The Liberty Lady Flames lacrosse squad notched its third consecutive win as Liberty defeated Gardner-Webb, 23-4 in Boiling Springs, N.C. on Friday evening.
The 23-goal scoring outburst by the Liberty attack set a new single game record for team in goals scored. The previous record was most recently matched on April 15, 2012 when the Lady Flames defeated Presbyterian, 22-21 in overtime.
The Lady Flames improved to 5-8 overall including a 3-0 mark in Big South action, while Gardner-Webb is still winless in its inaugural season with an 0-12 record and a 0-3 record in conference play.
Liberty jumped on the board early and fast as the Lady Flames sprung ahead 3-0 in the first seven minutes of play. Co-captain Nina Dunay netted an unassisted goal at 27:16 to begin the scoring onslaught from the Lady Flames. Michaela Rich and Kallie Britton notched the next two goals for Liberty, both assisted by co-captain and redshirt senior, Morgan Becker.
Gardner-Webb outscored Liberty, 3-2 during the next six minutes of play to cut the deficit to 5-3.
The two Liberty goals were notched by Rich and Courtney Brown, once again both assisted by Becker. The Virginia native assisted on four of the first five strikes by the Lady Flames' attack on the day.
Liberty outscored Gardner-Webb, 9-0 over the final 14:34 of the opening frame. The scoring spurt began when Sam Struss netted her 22nd goal of the season to extend the Liberty lead to three.
With 12:02 remaining before intermission, Kelly Belue connected on her first goal of the season when freshman Katy Pridemore found the North Carolina native racing toward the net. Belue's strike found the mark, extending the Liberty lead to 7-3.
After assisting in four of the first five goals, Becker found the back of the net for her own goal with 10:25 remaining in the first half. Britton returned the favor, finding Becker for the attempt on net. Becker ripped the shot into the nylon for an 8-3 Liberty lead.
Abigail Britton and Olivia Becker both connected on their first goals of the season just two and a half minutes apart from one another. Britton's goal marked the freshman's first career goal, coming off of a free position attempt.
Becker's goal was set up by none other than her sophomore's sister, Morgan Becker. Morgan passed the ball from the left side of the net to a wide open Olivia. Becker buried the shot into the back of the net before Gardner-Webb goalie, Raygan Hall could react.
With a 14-3 advantage coming out of the gates in the second half, Pridemore notched her 32nd goal of the season to take a 15-3 lead. Pridemore's 32 goals ties her with teammate Morgan Becker for the fourth most goals scored in a single season. Becker accomplished the feat last season. Pridemore has now netted at least one goal in each Liberty's 13 games thus far in 2015.
Liberty outscored the Runnin' Bulldogs 8-1 during the final 27 minutes of competition to solidify its 23-4 triumph over Gardner-Webb.
Three Lady Flames notched their first goals in their Liberty careers during the final 13 minutes of play. Erin Cornell netted a strike, assisted by Belue, with 12:26 remaining in the second half. Cornell's goal extended the Liberty lead to 20-3.
With 7:38 remaining in the contest, Eden Bayuk was granted a free position attempt. The transfer sophomore connected on the opportunity to push the lead to 21-3.
Freshman Caroline Smith netted her first goal of the season with 3:57 to play to extend the Lady Flames lead to 22-3. Smith's strike was set up by Belue for her second assist of the contest.
Liberty's record setting goal came from Olivia Becker with 34 ticks remaining on the clock. With the Lady Flames ahead 22-4, Brown found Becker streaking towards the goal. One sophomore to another, Becker capitalized on the opportunity, setting the new team record with 23 goals in a single contest.
Morgan Becker continued her strong play during the contest, netting two goals and dishing out six assists. The redshirt senior now has 21 points in the last three contests.
Juliann Elmer notched her fifth win of the season in the goal for the Lady Flames. The junior goalkeeper turned away eight shots during the contest to bring her saves total to 164. Elmer is 23 saves away from passing former Liberty standout Kristen Masullo for the most saves in a single season in program history.
The Lady Flames outshot the Runnin' Bulldogs, 36-14 while also winning the ground balls battle, 27-17.
Liberty returns to action on Sunday when the Lady Flames travel further south to Clinton, S.C. to take on Presbyterian at 1 p.m. in a Big South contest.
