Saturday, February 28
Lynchburg, Va.
1:00 PM ET
Liberty University
0-5
6
vs
16
No. 25 Richmond
4-2
1
2
3
4
F
Richmond
3
7
1
5
16
Liberty
0
2
3
1
6
Liberty Upended 16-6 at Home to No. 25 Richmond
2/28/2026 5:40:00 PM | Women's Lacrosse
LYNCHBURG, Va. – The Liberty lacrosse team (0-4) is still searching for its first win of the season after falling 16-6 at home to No. 25 Richmond on Saturday afternoon at the Liberty Lacrosse Field.
The Spiders jumped out to a commanding 9-1 lead with minutes remaining in the first half. Richmond was led by Charlotte Edwards (five goals) and Alexis Morton (2 goals, three assists).
Richmond avenges a 14-13 loss at home last season, which marked Liberty's highest-ranked win in program history (No. 20).
Freshman Sophia Nesci stood out in the defeat, recording her first career hat trick while adding an assist. The Syracuse, N.Y. native has scored at least one goal in each of her first four career games. She leads the team in all scoring categories in the young season (7 goals, five assists and 12 points).
Redshirt sophomore Fayedra Vang recorded her first career goal in the contest. She was playing in the sixth game of her career.
Reigning Atlantic Sun Defensive Player of the Year, Jenna Burrow, made her first start of the season after missing the opening three contests of the season. The senior recorded three ground balls and two caused turnovers.
Liberty Goals: Sophia Nesci 3 ; Katie Colavito 1 ; Amelia Loughery 1 ; Fayedra Vang 1
Liberty Assists: Kendall Coss 1 ; Sophia Nesci 1 ; Ava Rajala 1 ; Olivia Young 1
Richmond Goals: Charlotte Edwards 4 ; Bridget Lonsinger 3 ; Keating Hopkins 2 ; Alexis Morton 2 ; Juliana Stanley 2 ; Stella Axe 1 ; Rileigh Meyer 1 ; Meghan Rode 1
Richmond Assists: Alexis Morton 3 ; Juliana Stanley 3 ; Meghan Rode 2 ; Anya Wardle 2 ; Keating Hopkins 1 .
Liberty Goalkeeper: Rachel Hines (0-4) – seven saves, 16 goals allowed, .304 save percentage
Richmond Goalkeepers: Abby Fracioli (3-2) – five saves, three goals allowed, .625 save percentage
Maggie Mullen – one save, two goals allowed, .333 save percentage
Ally Gouveia – one save, one goal allowed, .500 save percentage
First Quarter
Richmond set the pace from the start with Edwards' goal four seconds in, on a woman-up opportunity. Liberty struggled to find its rhythm in the opening quarter, being held scoreless. Richmond's lead grew with goals from Morton and Lonsinger, assisted by Wardle. The quarter ended with the Lady Flames trailing 3-0.
Second Quarter
Liberty fought back when Colavito scored at 11:38, assisted by Nesci, but Richmond quickly answered with a goal from Stanley at 11:09, capitalizing on a woman-up situation. The Lady Flames continued battling with a woman-up goal by Loughery, assisted by Coss, at 1:51, but still trailed Richmond 10-2 at the half.
Third Quarter
The Lady Flames showed determination in the third quarter, starting with Vang's goal at 10:42, assisted by Young. Despite turnovers, Liberty pressed on with Nesci scoring twice, closing the gap. Richmond scored late in the quarter, leaving Liberty behind 11-5 as the third quarter ended.
Fourth Quarter
Richmond extended their lead swiftly in the fourth, including a woman-up goal by Axe at 11:03, prompting a Liberty timeout. Nesci managed a woman-up goal, assisted by Christensen at 3:41, but Richmond's scoring surge was too much. The game concluded with Richmond winning 16-6.
Lady Flames News & Notes
Up Next
Liberty (0-4) will take on its first road test of the season at Longwood (0-4) on Wednesday. The contest is set for a 5 p.m. start and will be broadcast live on ESPN+.
The Spiders jumped out to a commanding 9-1 lead with minutes remaining in the first half. Richmond was led by Charlotte Edwards (five goals) and Alexis Morton (2 goals, three assists).
Richmond avenges a 14-13 loss at home last season, which marked Liberty's highest-ranked win in program history (No. 20).
Freshman Sophia Nesci stood out in the defeat, recording her first career hat trick while adding an assist. The Syracuse, N.Y. native has scored at least one goal in each of her first four career games. She leads the team in all scoring categories in the young season (7 goals, five assists and 12 points).
Redshirt sophomore Fayedra Vang recorded her first career goal in the contest. She was playing in the sixth game of her career.
Reigning Atlantic Sun Defensive Player of the Year, Jenna Burrow, made her first start of the season after missing the opening three contests of the season. The senior recorded three ground balls and two caused turnovers.
Liberty Goals: Sophia Nesci 3 ; Katie Colavito 1 ; Amelia Loughery 1 ; Fayedra Vang 1
Liberty Assists: Kendall Coss 1 ; Sophia Nesci 1 ; Ava Rajala 1 ; Olivia Young 1
Richmond Goals: Charlotte Edwards 4 ; Bridget Lonsinger 3 ; Keating Hopkins 2 ; Alexis Morton 2 ; Juliana Stanley 2 ; Stella Axe 1 ; Rileigh Meyer 1 ; Meghan Rode 1
Richmond Assists: Alexis Morton 3 ; Juliana Stanley 3 ; Meghan Rode 2 ; Anya Wardle 2 ; Keating Hopkins 1 .
Liberty Goalkeeper: Rachel Hines (0-4) – seven saves, 16 goals allowed, .304 save percentage
Richmond Goalkeepers: Abby Fracioli (3-2) – five saves, three goals allowed, .625 save percentage
Maggie Mullen – one save, two goals allowed, .333 save percentage
Ally Gouveia – one save, one goal allowed, .500 save percentage
First Quarter
Richmond set the pace from the start with Edwards' goal four seconds in, on a woman-up opportunity. Liberty struggled to find its rhythm in the opening quarter, being held scoreless. Richmond's lead grew with goals from Morton and Lonsinger, assisted by Wardle. The quarter ended with the Lady Flames trailing 3-0.
Second Quarter
Liberty fought back when Colavito scored at 11:38, assisted by Nesci, but Richmond quickly answered with a goal from Stanley at 11:09, capitalizing on a woman-up situation. The Lady Flames continued battling with a woman-up goal by Loughery, assisted by Coss, at 1:51, but still trailed Richmond 10-2 at the half.
Third Quarter
The Lady Flames showed determination in the third quarter, starting with Vang's goal at 10:42, assisted by Young. Despite turnovers, Liberty pressed on with Nesci scoring twice, closing the gap. Richmond scored late in the quarter, leaving Liberty behind 11-5 as the third quarter ended.
Fourth Quarter
Richmond extended their lead swiftly in the fourth, including a woman-up goal by Axe at 11:03, prompting a Liberty timeout. Nesci managed a woman-up goal, assisted by Christensen at 3:41, but Richmond's scoring surge was too much. The game concluded with Richmond winning 16-6.
Lady Flames News & Notes
- Richmond outshot Liberty 30-17 and had a 23-13 margin in shots on goal.
- Liberty held a 17-12 edge in caused turnovers, while Liberty was held to a 16-of-22 conversion rate on clears (Richmond was 14-of-16).
- Three Lady Flames, Katie Colavito, Kate Troutman and Ava McGlothlin, totaled three caused turnovers each.
- Richmond held a 7-2 scoring advantage in the second quarter.
- Nesci led all Lady Flames with four points (3g, 1a).
- Four Lady Flames, Nesci, Kendall Coss, Ava Rajala and Olivia Young, recorded a single assist.
- Defender Ava McGlothlin tallied three caused turnovers and three ground balls.
- Two Lady Flames, McGlothlin and Jenna Burrow, earned three ground balls.
- Goalkeeper Rachel Hines recorded seven saves on 30 shots faced. Her totals for the season are now 39 saves, 63 goals allowed for a 15.75 goals-against average and a .304 save percentage on 138 shots faced.
Up Next
Liberty (0-4) will take on its first road test of the season at Longwood (0-4) on Wednesday. The contest is set for a 5 p.m. start and will be broadcast live on ESPN+.
Team Stats
RICHMOND
LIBERTY
Shots
30
17
Turnovers
23
19
Caused Turnovers
12
17
Draw Controls
21
2
Free-Position Shots
3
1
Ground Balls
19
17
Game Leaders
G
3
A
1
FO
-
Pen
-
GB
0
CT
0
G
1
A
0
FO
-
Pen
-60
GB
1
CT
1
G
1
A
0
FO
-
Pen
-
GB
2
CT
3
G
1
A
0
FO
-
Pen
-
GB
0
CT
0
Players Mentioned
D
/ Women's LacrosseM
/ Women's Lacrosse
M
/ Women's Lacrosse
GK
/ Women's LacrosseA
/ Women's Lacrosse
D
/ Women's LacrosseA
/ Women's Lacrosse
A
/ Women's Lacrosse
M
/ Women's LacrosseM
/ Women's Lacrosse
A
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Mackenzie Lehman & Katie Colavito Talk About Preparing For The NCAA WLAX Tournament
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