ELON, N.C. – After entering halftime knotted at six, the Elon University women's lacrosse team produced seven unanswered goals to open the second half en route to a 16-8 win over the Towson Tigers. The win punches Elon's ticket to the 2025 CAA Tournament, which begins May 1 in Stony Brook, N.Y.

The Phoenix exploded out of halftime, outshooting Towson 10-3 in the third quarter and won five of eight draws en route to a 7-0 frame. Vandiver poured in five goals on the day, tied for her season-high, with four coming during the dominant third-quarter stretch. 

Sammy Fisher and Ana Lee Vandiver led the way offensively, combining for nine of Elon's 16 total goals. Fisher added four goals and two assists, marking back-to-back contests with four scores. The duo spearheaded an attack that featured nine different goal scorers. Lillian Austin set a new career-high with six points, tallying a career-best five assists and scoring once. Her precision passing helped the Phoenix (8-6, 5-2 CAA) secure its fifth CAA win of the year.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• For the second consecutive game, Sammy Fisher opened the scoring with the first two goals, giving Elon an early 2-0 advantage.
• Carley Sgueglia followed with her second career goal, and Lila Ceribelli added another, extending Elon's lead to 4-1.
• Towson closed the first quarter with a 3-0 run, with all four of the Tigers' points in the period coming from Milana Zizakovic.
• The second quarter was hard-fought, and both teams were tied at six heading into the break.
• Elon came out strong in the second half, scoring seven unanswered goals. Ana Lee Vandiver tallied the first three in just a minute and a half.
• Fisher completed the hat trick with a goal late in the third quarter, extending the Phoenix lead to 13-6 heading into the final period.
• The Elon defense remained strong throughout, restricting the Tigers to just four shots on goal in the second half, all of which came in the fourth quarter.
• Fisher and Vandiver each added one more goal in the fourth, sealing a 16-8 victory and ending Towson's postseason hopes.

NOTES AND STATS

• Sammy Fisher recorded six points, including four goals and two assists, tying her career-high in goals.
• Ana Lee Vandiver scored five goals, matching her season-high.
• Lillian Austin set a career-high with six points, including a career-best five assists and one goal. Her five assists are the most by any Phoenix player this season and the most since Mia Zebley also had five against Towson in 2024.
• Cierra Hopson contributed one goal and one assist.
• Caitlin Walsh earned the win in goal, registering six saves and leading the team with three ground balls.
• Seven different players for Elon caused turnovers on defense. Elon's defense limited Towson to a season-low opponent shooting percentage of .320.
• The Phoenix outshot Towson 31-27 overall, including 27-14 in shots on goal.
• Elon was hard to beat on the draw, leading 18-10. Fisher led with eight draw controls, followed by MJ Santa Barbara with six.
• For the second consecutive game, Elon shut down its opponent in the third quarter, outscoring the Tigers 7-0. Combined with the Phoenix's win over the Tribe, Elon has outscored its opponents 13-0 in the third quarter over the last two games.
• Elon improved to 5-3 at home this season, marking Elon's first-ever home win against Towson and starting a win streak in the all-time series for the Phoenix.
• By clinching a spot in the CAA Tournament, Elon has secured back-to-back conference tournament appearances for the first time since the 2018 and 2019 seasons.

POSTSEASON POSSIBILITIES

• With today's win, Elon secured the final spot in the 2025 CAA Tournament. The other three teams in the tournament will be Stony Brook, Delaware, and Drexel.
• The tournament will return to Stony Brook, N.Y., for the third consecutive season, as the Seawolves have earned the #1 seed and the regular-season CAA title.
• Elon will wrap up the regular season on the road against the current #2 seed, Drexel, on April 26 at noon. 

UP NEXT

• Elon will stay home for a Wednesday night matchup against Queens at 5 p.m. This game will be Elon's final non-conference matchup of the season and its last home game of 2025. Queens comes into the contest with an overall record of 5-10.