Statesmen Fight Hard but Fall to Spartans 16-10

Oskaloosa. — William Penn women’s lacrosse returned home after their spring break trip and faced Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference opponents Missouri Baptist on Saturday. Both sides were looking for their first conference win of the season but it would be Missouri Baptist who closed out the game the stronger side. The first half was a close and fun 30 minutes, with MBU leading 8-7 at the break. Despite hanging with the Spartans in the first half, the Statesmen found only three goals in the second half, falling 16-10 at the final buzzer. WPU drops to 1-4 overall and 0-2 in KCAC play.

A windy day at Statesmen Community Stadium saw the Spartans blow by the navy and gold for two goals in just under 90 seconds, as Madison Reed (Fr., Shakopee, Minn., Secondary Education) made one save over the first three shots of the game. The Statesmen finally got their attack going with Emma Lady (Sr., Richmond, Ind., Masters of Sports Management), who got the first shot away even though it flew wide.

Reed made another save just past the 25-minute mark and the navy and gold ran it back to the other end. Mia Arnone (Fr., St. Louis, Mo., Digital Communication) circled behind the net and then lobbed into perfectly to Hallie Clark (Fr., Centerville, Utah), who fired the ball into the top corner to get WPU on the board.

The Spartans tallied another goal but Clark then fed Lady on a nice dish inside the crease, and #9 zipped it in to make it 3-2. Arnone then took a pass from MacKenzie Petersen (Fr., Albertville, Minn., Public Accounting) and fired it home to tie the game with 17:48 to go in the first half.

Both sides then exchanged goals over the next few minutes, with Lady and Clark both adding to their goal count. With 7:29 to go, Petersen was given a free position shot and she drove and scored, giving William Penn their first lead at 6-5. However, just nine seconds later, MBU tied the game again, with the Spartans going ahead 7-6 a minute after that on a free position shot.

But Clark was not done scoring in the half, lancing her third goal of the game in off a fantastic pass from Bailee Royal (Fr., Hallsville, Texas, Sports Management). As the final minutes ticked off the board, the Missouri Baptist squad began to assert themselves once more, taking a couple shots before they scored with 45 seconds to go.

Trailing by one on the other side of halftime, William Penn was in a good position to battle for their first-ever conference win. However, the Spartans threw down eight goals in a row to put the contest well out of reach.

Down 16-7, the Statesmen did find some bright spots towards the end of the game. On a free position chance, Lady spotted Clark with no one around her as the teams set up. Lady flung it over instead of taking a shot and Clark caught and shot the ball all in one motion, giving her four goals on the day. The team then produced a beautiful transition goal, as Lady played give-and-go with Araceli Angel (Sr., Tama, Iowa, Masters of Sports Management) to enter the attacking end. Driving the crease, Lady gave it up to Arnone, who roofed it to make it 16-9.

The final goal saw the Spartans forget all about Angel, who made herself available in the slot as the Statesmen quickly brought it up the field. She launched it into the twine to a rousing cheer from the home crowd, making the score 16-10.

William Penn were outshot 34-20 in the game, but picked up 21 ground balls. Clark led the team with four goals, while Lady and Arnone each had two. Lady led the team with three assists, as Petersen and Clark each had two. Arnone paced the lineup with six shots, while Rea-Samone Brown (Fr., Graham, Wash., Sociology) topped the charts with four ground ball pickups. Reed made nine saves in the losing effort.

“Today’s game was another learning opportunity for our team,” said Head Coach Corrine Smeak. “We started the game strong by answering back to each of the Missouri Baptist goals. In the second half, it took us awhile to find the momentum that we needed. Overall, the girls fought till the very wend. We have to fight for every ball and opportunity to get our next win.

Next Up: A week off will lead up to a home match against Clarke on Saturday, March 20, at noon.