Towson, Md. – Elon women's lacrosse sophomore Cierra Hopson tied the program record with seven goals but a late rally by the Phoenix came up short in a 17-14 loss at Towson Saturday. Hopson set the program's record against a Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) opponent and tied the mark established by Molly Garrigan in 2014.
 
Hopson scored three first half goals and quickly added a fourth early in the third. She closed the period with two scores in the final 66 seconds to get to six goals. Her final goal came with 1:07 left and was the final goal of the contest.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• The scoring started slowly and the game was tied at 1-1 midway through the first period. But Towson scored three in a row before Anna Hackett closed the period with an unassisted goal to make it 4-2.
• Towson scored six of the first eight goals of the second period and built a 10-4 lead despite scores from Camryn Levin and Hopson. But Hopson and Sammy Fisher scored in the final minutes of the half to make it 10-6 at the break.
• After Hopson's fourth goal midway through the third, the score sat at 11-7 but Towson had a four-goal run that ultimately put the contest away. Hopson scored her fifth and sixth late in the period, but Elon still trailed 15-9 heading into the fourth.
• After Towson took a 16-9 lead, Elon scored five of the final six goals but the Phoenix ran out of time. Hannah McCarthy scored twice, Fisher and Levin added goals, and Hopson closed the scoring with 1:07 to play.

 
 NOTES AND STATS

• The 31 goals between the two teams tied Elon's season high in a game this year. The Phoenix defeated Coastal Carolina 16-15 on Feb. 26.
• Cierra Hopson's seven goals were a career high. It is the fifth time she scored at least three in a game this year and bettered her season-high of four goals in the season opener against Old Dominion. A year ago, she twice scored four goals in a game as a freshman.
• Hannah McCarthy had two goals and two assists. She entered the contest with just two points on the season, with single goals against Old Dominion and Stony Brook. She had five points in a game twice a year ago, doing so in back-to-back contests against Campbell and Furman. Her career-high is six points against Delaware in 2020 in the team's final game before COVID-19 shut down the season.
• Sammy Fisher had two goals and three points, while Camryn Levin had two goals.
• Kailee Follette had a team-high four ground balls, tying her season and career-high.
• Julia Dalmass tied her season-high with eight draw controls.
• Caitlin Walsh made nine saves, the fourth consecutive game that she has posted at least nine.
• Towson held a 39-26 advantage on shots and 26-20 on shots on goal.
• Elon held a 20-15 advantage on draw controls but the Phoenix committed 25 turnovers and Towson had a 22-18 edge on ground balls.

 
UP NEXT

• Elon will play at Drexel Friday at noon in a game on LacrosseTV.