SOUTH EUCLID, Ohio – The 2019 Notre Dame College lacrosse team now has the most Mountain East Conference wins in program history after defeating West Virginia Wesleyan College, on Friday afternoon. In the 18-13 victory, NDC had four players who scored three goals and two players who scored twice.

On the offensive end, both teams got off to a slow start, as only five goals were scored in the first 15 minutes of the contest. In that time Notre Dame's freshman Ellejanna Cicione had four saves in goal while Gabrielle Cleaveland had three for West Virginia Wesleyan.

While leading 4-3, Notre Dame (7-7, 3-3 MEC) scored back-to-back goals after getting the bounces to go their way. A free position shot by senior Taylor Henderson hit the post and bounced to freshman Katie Wendell who picked the ball up and scored. About three and-a-half minutes later, a shot by sophomore Selena Carter hit the crossbar and popped up in the air. Henderson scooped it up and scored to put NDC on top, 6-3.

West Virginia Wesleyan (4-8, 0-6 MEC) scored the final two goals of the half after picking up a missed NDC shot and taking it down for the first goal and then getting the ball back after a Notre Dame offensive foul and scoring again. At halftime, the Falcons' lead was down to two goals, 8-6.

To begin the second half, both teams turned the ball over three times, each. WVWC took advantage of a foul and Lauren Bolen scored on a free position shot. After grabbing the draw control, West Virginia Wesleyan scored again, this time Samantha Pappas put the ball in the net with an assist by Lindsay Penwell. The Bobcats tied the game at eight and it was the first time the game had been knotted up since early in the first half, when the score was 2-2.

But the Falcons responded with a 6-0 run. From the 22:46-mark to the 10:29-mark in the second half, NDC scored six goals, won four draw controls and caused three turnovers. Freshman Danyelle Hardy scored a goal and assisted on two shots.

"We switched up our defense a little bit," said Head Coach Pam Jenkins, talking about the response run. "We told our attackers to be more patient and place the ball. We wanted them to take their time, they were kind of rushing it on attack in the first half and we weren't really running our plays. Once we took our time, we regrouped, they got it together and did a really good job down the stretch."

The two teams then nearly matched each other goal for goal in the final 10 minutes. Notre Dame would win by five, 18-13, as that would be the closest the Bobcats could get after the long NDC run.

Notre Dame's seven wins are the most since the program won eight games in 2014. Their three conference wins are the most since 2013, when the team won five conference games, prior to joining the MEC. They also swept the season series with West Virginia Wesleyan, winning both games against the Bobcats. Jenkins credits her players for working on the details that the coaches have talked about.

"They are just stepping up and doing the little things," she said. "Katie (Wendell) is doing a really good job on the draws, just placing it where we need it. With Taylor (Henderson) and Leslie (Diaz), they're doing a good job of getting it and that sets the tone and sets momentum for us to get going. I think when we have that and we get the draws, everything goes up from there."

For the Falcons, freshman Leslie Diaz, sophomore Abigail Plewes, Henderson and Hardy had three goals, each. Henderson and Hardy also had three assists, as four players assisted on at least one goal. Wendell scored two goals, grabbed four groundballs and caused three turnovers. Sophomore Blaike Windsor scored two goals after coming off the bench. The team caused 18 turnovers and Cicione saved seven shots.

"I'm excited, I'm glad the girls are stepping up and doing the little things that we are harping on," Jenkins mentioned. "Of course, there are some things we need to work on, but we just continue to get better and move in the right direction."

For WVWC, Madison Duvall led the team with four goals and eight draw controls while Penwell totaled three assists. The Bobcats turned the ball over 18 times. Although they won two more draw controls than NDC, West Virginia Wesleyan took 24 less shots than the Falcons.

The Falcons will host Shepherd University on April 14. First draw is scheduled for 12 p.m.