Whittle, Hensh Lead #1 Maryland Past Hofstra, 14-6
HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. – Freshmen Megan Whittle and Taylor Hensh each scored hat tricks as the No. 1 Maryland women’s lacrosse team (3-0) dominated Hofstra (2-2) in a 14-6 win Saturday afternoon.
Whittle notched three goals for the second straight game, while Hensh tallied her first collegiate hat trick against the Pride. Taylor Cummings, Brooke Griffin and Kristen Lamon each scored twice, while Kelly McPartland and Caroline Wannen added goals. Cummings finished the game with five points (2G, 3A) to pace the Terrapins.
Whittle started the scoring at 27:32 with a free-position goal. After defender Casey Pepperman caused a turnover in the Terps’ zone, Cummings scored at 23:30. Hensh notched her first career goal at 20:35.
Whittle tallied her second of the game at 10:32, and the freshman scored again less than a minute later, beating the goalie on the left to put the Terps up, 6-1. After McPartland scored on an 8-meter shot, Griffin shoveled a low shot into the goal at 7:55 as Maryland went up, 8-1. Lamon also scored as Maryland took a 9-3 lead at the half.
Griffin notched the first goal after the break, and Hensh scored a free-position goal two minutes later as the Terps took an 11-3 lead at 19:19. Hensh tallied another 8-meter, while Cummings added one of her own to put Maryland up, 13-4. Wannen scored the Terps’ last goal, and the Pride was able to put two more on the board before the game finished with a 14-6 Maryland win.
Graduate student Alex Fitzpatrick started in goal and played 53:25, making seven saves. Sophomore Emily Kift played the remaining 6:35 and earned two saves.
The Terps held a 32-19 advantage in shots, while the Pride took an 11-10 lead in ground balls. The teams were tied with 11 draw controls apiece. Maryland was a perfect 20-for-20 on clears, and the team went 5-for-7 on free-position shots.
The top-ranked Terrapins return to College Park to face in-state rival UMBC next Wednesday, March 4, at 7 p.m. The game will be streamed on BTN Plus.
-Maryland-
