Saturday, March 21
Clarksville, Tenn.
11:30 AM ET/10:30 AM CT
Liberty University
3-5, 1-0
24
at
7
Austin Peay
4-6, 0-1
1st quarter1
2nd quarter2
3rd quarter3
4th quarter4
FinalF
Liberty
5
5
10
4
24
Austin Peay
2
3
1
1
7
Lady Flames Showcase Scoring Prowess in 24-7 Victory at Austin Peay
3/21/2026 4:02:00 PM | Women's Lacrosse
CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – Liberty (4-5, 2-0 ASUN) delivered a resounding 24–7 victory over inaugural ASUN member, Austin Peay University (4-6, 0-2 ASUN) on Saturday. Liberty's dynamic offense, highlighted by 12 assists and six woman-up goals, paved the way for the commanding victory.
The Lady Flames own a three-game winning streak, including Thursday's ASUN opening victory, 19-8, at Lindenwood. The Lady Flames improve to 2-0 in ASUN action.
Liberty and Austin Peay met for the very first time on Saturday. The Governors are in the midst of their inaugural season as a women's lacrosse program.
Austin Peay kept within striking distance in the first half, facing a five-goal deficit despite allowing a hat trick to Freshman Sophia Nesci in the opening half. Liberty exploded in the third quarter, netting 10 goals while allowing just a single tally to the Governors. The Lady Flames iced the game with four in the final quarter.
Nesci paved the way with seven points on five goals and dishing out two assists, converting on all five of her shots. The freshman mirrored her scoring output from Thursday's win at Lindenwood.
Ava Rajala, also starred with seven points, made her presence felt with four goals and three assists while creating three caused turnovers and securing five ground balls. Olivia Young shined with four goals and two assists. Katie Colavito stood out, scoring four goals and an assist, while forcing three caused turnovers.
Liberty scored the third-most goals in a single game in program history on Saturday. The Lady Flames took advantage of free-position attempts, converting on 4-of-7 eight-meter opportunities.
Freshman Ava Thompson (3:34) scored the first goal of her collegiate career in the fourth quarter.
Liberty Goals: Sophia Nesci 5 ; Katie Colavito 4 ; Ava Rajala 4 ; Olivia Young 4 ; Nicole Arriola 1 ; Claire Christensen 1 ; Hattie Messick 1 ; Rilynn Price 1 ; Ava Thompson 1 ; Fayedra Vang 2
Liberty Assists: Ava Rajala 3 ; Claire Christensen 2 ; Sophia Nesci 2 ; Olivia Young 2 ; Katie Colavito 1 ; Hattie Messick 1 ; Fayedra Vang 1
Austin Peay Goals: Fiona Lemke 3 ; Lauryn Warfield 2 ; Kearston Jackson 1 ; Morgan Lantz 1
Austin Peay Assists: Fiona Lemke 3 ; Kayla Hobday 1 ; Sophia Schwab 1
Liberty Goalkeepers: Rachel Hines (4-5), 45:00, four saves, six goals, 14 saves
Kiley Wilson, 15:00, one save, one goal, two shots faced
Austin Peay Goalkeepers: Erin-Kate Roeder, 60:00, six saves, 24 goals, 39 shots faced
First Quarter Liberty 5 – Austin Peay 2
The Lady Flames started strong as Sophia Nesci opened the scoring with a free-position goal at 13:16. The Governors quickly answered with a goal from Fiona Lemke. However, Liberty regained the lead when Katie Colavito scored at 8:26. Nesci and Rajala added to the tally, with Nesci assisting Rajala, before Olivia Young closed the quarter with a goal, giving Liberty a 5–2 edge.
Second Quarter Liberty 10 – Austin Peay 5
Ava Rajala kicked off the second quarter with a woman-up goal. Liberty continued to press as Nesci scored, assisted by Fayedra Vang. The Governors managed a response with a goal from Kearston Jackson, assisted by Lemke. Undeterred, Olivia Young and Colavito each found the back of the net, with Colavito capitalizing on a woman-up chance assisted by Hattie Messick. Despite a late goal from the Governors, Liberty led 10–5 at halftime.
Third Quarter Liberty 20 – Austin Peay 6
Liberty maintained its momentum in the third, as Colavito opened scoring at 13:15 and added another at 11:33 with an assist from Rajala. Young extended the lead with a goal at 10:59, thanks to Claire Christensen's assist. Rajala and Nesci each contributed further, with Liberty heading into the final quarter up 20–6.
The Lady Flames have dominated play in the third quarter with 19 goals in the third quarters of Thursday's and Saturday's contests. They allowed just two goals in each frame.
Fourth Quarter Liberty 24 – Austin Peay 7
Nicole Arriola initiated the fourth quarter scoring for Liberty at 14:18, followed by a woman-up goal from Rilynn Price at 12:37. Ava Thompson, with her first career score, added to the tally at 3:34. Christensen closed the scoring at 1:33. Despite a late goal from Lemke for the Governors, Liberty's dominance was clear, sealing the game 24–7.
Lady Flames News & Notes
Next up
The Lady Flames (4-5, 2-0 ASUN) will host Stetson (1-8, 1-0 ASUN) in another conference matchup at the Liberty Lacrosse Field on Thursday at 4 p.m. The contest will be streamed live on ESPN+.
The Lady Flames own a three-game winning streak, including Thursday's ASUN opening victory, 19-8, at Lindenwood. The Lady Flames improve to 2-0 in ASUN action.
Liberty and Austin Peay met for the very first time on Saturday. The Governors are in the midst of their inaugural season as a women's lacrosse program.
Austin Peay kept within striking distance in the first half, facing a five-goal deficit despite allowing a hat trick to Freshman Sophia Nesci in the opening half. Liberty exploded in the third quarter, netting 10 goals while allowing just a single tally to the Governors. The Lady Flames iced the game with four in the final quarter.
Nesci paved the way with seven points on five goals and dishing out two assists, converting on all five of her shots. The freshman mirrored her scoring output from Thursday's win at Lindenwood.
Ava Rajala, also starred with seven points, made her presence felt with four goals and three assists while creating three caused turnovers and securing five ground balls. Olivia Young shined with four goals and two assists. Katie Colavito stood out, scoring four goals and an assist, while forcing three caused turnovers.
Liberty scored the third-most goals in a single game in program history on Saturday. The Lady Flames took advantage of free-position attempts, converting on 4-of-7 eight-meter opportunities.
Freshman Ava Thompson (3:34) scored the first goal of her collegiate career in the fourth quarter.
Liberty Goals: Sophia Nesci 5 ; Katie Colavito 4 ; Ava Rajala 4 ; Olivia Young 4 ; Nicole Arriola 1 ; Claire Christensen 1 ; Hattie Messick 1 ; Rilynn Price 1 ; Ava Thompson 1 ; Fayedra Vang 2
Liberty Assists: Ava Rajala 3 ; Claire Christensen 2 ; Sophia Nesci 2 ; Olivia Young 2 ; Katie Colavito 1 ; Hattie Messick 1 ; Fayedra Vang 1
Austin Peay Goals: Fiona Lemke 3 ; Lauryn Warfield 2 ; Kearston Jackson 1 ; Morgan Lantz 1
Austin Peay Assists: Fiona Lemke 3 ; Kayla Hobday 1 ; Sophia Schwab 1
Liberty Goalkeepers: Rachel Hines (4-5), 45:00, four saves, six goals, 14 saves
Kiley Wilson, 15:00, one save, one goal, two shots faced
Austin Peay Goalkeepers: Erin-Kate Roeder, 60:00, six saves, 24 goals, 39 shots faced
First Quarter Liberty 5 – Austin Peay 2
The Lady Flames started strong as Sophia Nesci opened the scoring with a free-position goal at 13:16. The Governors quickly answered with a goal from Fiona Lemke. However, Liberty regained the lead when Katie Colavito scored at 8:26. Nesci and Rajala added to the tally, with Nesci assisting Rajala, before Olivia Young closed the quarter with a goal, giving Liberty a 5–2 edge.
Second Quarter Liberty 10 – Austin Peay 5
Ava Rajala kicked off the second quarter with a woman-up goal. Liberty continued to press as Nesci scored, assisted by Fayedra Vang. The Governors managed a response with a goal from Kearston Jackson, assisted by Lemke. Undeterred, Olivia Young and Colavito each found the back of the net, with Colavito capitalizing on a woman-up chance assisted by Hattie Messick. Despite a late goal from the Governors, Liberty led 10–5 at halftime.
Third Quarter Liberty 20 – Austin Peay 6
Liberty maintained its momentum in the third, as Colavito opened scoring at 13:15 and added another at 11:33 with an assist from Rajala. Young extended the lead with a goal at 10:59, thanks to Claire Christensen's assist. Rajala and Nesci each contributed further, with Liberty heading into the final quarter up 20–6.
The Lady Flames have dominated play in the third quarter with 19 goals in the third quarters of Thursday's and Saturday's contests. They allowed just two goals in each frame.
Fourth Quarter Liberty 24 – Austin Peay 7
Nicole Arriola initiated the fourth quarter scoring for Liberty at 14:18, followed by a woman-up goal from Rilynn Price at 12:37. Ava Thompson, with her first career score, added to the tally at 3:34. Christensen closed the scoring at 1:33. Despite a late goal from Lemke for the Governors, Liberty's dominance was clear, sealing the game 24–7.
Lady Flames News & Notes
- Liberty held a 39-16 edge in shots and a 25-12 edge in shots on goal.
- The Lady Flames earned 13 caused turnovers while committing 15. Rajala and Colavito led the Lady Flames with three a piece.
- Liberty earned 13 draw controls, paced by Nina Gray with four.
- The Flames went 4-of-7 in free-position attempts, improving its season-long efficiency to 23-of-47 (.489). Nesci leads the team with a 7-of-10 clip.
- At the end of the weekend, Nesci leads the Lady Flames with 24 goals and 37 points, along with being second on the squad with 13 assists.
- Nesci, a freshman, has scored multiple goals in six consecutive games. She has scored at least once in every game this season.
- Hines recorded four saves for the game against 14 shots faced. She now carries a 12.23 goals-against average and a .423 save percentage.
Next up
The Lady Flames (4-5, 2-0 ASUN) will host Stetson (1-8, 1-0 ASUN) in another conference matchup at the Liberty Lacrosse Field on Thursday at 4 p.m. The contest will be streamed live on ESPN+.
Team Stats
LIBERTY
AUSTIN P
Shots
39
16
Turnovers
15
27
Caused Turnovers
13
8
Draw Controls
13
18
Free-Position Shots
7
1
Ground Balls
26
16
Game Leaders
G
5
A
2
FO
-
Pen
-
GB
1
CT
0
G
4
A
2
FO
-
Pen
-
GB
0
CT
0
G
4
A
1
FO
-
Pen
-
GB
2
CT
3
G
4
A
3
FO
-
Pen
-
GB
5
CT
3
Players Mentioned
M
/ Women's Lacrosse
M/A
/ Women's LacrosseM
/ Women's Lacrosse
GK
/ Women's Lacrosse
M
/ Women's LacrosseA
/ Women's Lacrosse
M
/ Women's LacrosseA
/ Women's Lacrosse
M
/ Women's Lacrosse
M
/ Women's Lacrosse
GK
/ Women's LacrosseA
/ Women's LacrosseAva Rajala & Coach Nangle Talk About The Upcoming Lacrosse Season
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Tuesday, June 03
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Tuesday, May 06
Mackenzie Lehman & Katie Colavito Talk About Preparing For The NCAA WLAX Tournament
Tuesday, May 06