Elon, N.C. – The Elon University women's lacrosse team used a dominant second quarter to pull away from VCU in a 17-6 victory Saturday. Kailey McKenna scored a career-high five goals and Sammy Fisher, who entered the game with 99 career points, had two goals and three assists to become just the sixth player in program history to surpass 100.
 
Elon improved to 1-2 with the win and VCU dropped to 1-3 on the season.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Elon scored the first three goals of the game, getting the game's opener from Lila Ceribelli and then two from Kailey McKenna. VCU did scored late in the first period but the Phoenix took a 3-1 lead into the second.
• Sammy Fisher and Addie Gilner each scored to build the lead to 5-1 before a VCU tally brought the deficit down to three. Elon, though, exploded with the final five goals of the half for a 10-2 advantage.
• Five different players scored in the flurry, which included four assists. Cierra Hopson, Ana Lee Vandiver, Gilner, Danielle Swietoniowski and Lila Ceribelli each recorded goals. For Swietoniowski, it was the first of her career.
• VCU actually outscored Elon 4-3 in the third quarter but the Phoenix kept the Rams at arms-length. McKenna scored twice and Hopson added her second of the game for a 13-6 lead headed to the fourth.
• Elon scored all four goals of the final frame with McKenna's fifth of the contest coming early. Swietoniowski got her second goal, while Hopson and Fisher capped the scoring for the 17-6 win.

 
STATS AND NOTES

• Elon improved to 4-1 all-time against VCU. The last two contests, in 2023 and 2024, were each decided by one goal.
• With five points on the afternoon, Sammy Fisher now has 104 in her career, fifth-most in program history. She is chasing teammate Cierra Hopson and Mae McGlynn (both with 112 career points) for third all-time at Elon.
• Kailey McKenna entered the game with 10 career goals and just one multi-goal game in her career (two goals in a 13-9 win over Furman in 2024). Her five goals came on just six shots.
• Cierra Hopson had a hat trick with three goals, adding an assist, four a four-point day.
• Lila Ceribelli, Addie Gilner and Danielle Swietoniowski had two goals apiece. It was the first multi-goal game of each of their careers.
• Ana Lee Vandiver had three assists. She tied her career high after posting three in a 13-9 win over Furman a year ago.
• Jessie Penner and Mimi Economus had three caused turnovers each. Economus entered the game with just two career caused turnovers.
• Freshman Lillian Austin had seven draw controls and Brooke Scheuermann added six. They were large parts of Elon's 19-8 advantage on draw controls in the contest. Entering the game, Elon had lost the draw control battle 37-12 in the first two games of the season.
• Caitlin Walsh made five saves to hold VCU to just six goals in the contest. Elon outshot VCU 30-14, including 22-11 on goal.
• As a team, Elon had nine assists, tied for third-most in a single game in program history.

 
UP NEXT

• Elon will host East Carolina Tuesday at 5:00 p.m. ECU enters the contest with a record of 1-0 on the season.