ELON – A strong second-half showing powered the Elon women's lacrosse team (2-0) past Old Dominion (1-1) on Saturday in its home opener at Rudd Field.

Ana Lee Vandiver, Anna Hackett and Danielle Swietoniowski all converted hat tricks to lead the Phoenix. Elon scored seven of its 11 goals after the halftime break, including a 4-1 run in the opening minutes of the third quarter to take control of the game.

The Phoenix held the Monarchs to just six goals, the fewest goals Elon has allowed since Feb. 22, 2025, when it also allowed six against VCU.

The Rundown

• Vandiver opened the scoring with a pair of goals in the first six minutes of the contest. After Old Dominion cut the Elon lead in half, Swietoniowski answered with a goal assisted by freshman Lizzie Scalzo. The Monarchs got a goal back before the end of the quarter, but the Phoenix led 3-2 after one.
• Swietoniowski scored the lone goal of the second quarter at the 11:15 mark to give Elon a 4-2 lead. The teams went scoreless throughout the rest of the period, as the Phoenix took a two-goal lead into halftime.
• Hackett scored the first goal in just over 13 minutes of game action with her first tally of the game in the opening stages of the third quarter. After Old Dominion responded with a goal of its own, Elon went on a 3-0 scoring run to close the quarter, with goals from MJ Santa Barbara, Lillian Austin and Swietoniowski, who secured a hat trick to give Elon an 8-3 lead at the end of the third.
• Vandiver polished off her own hat trick with the first goal of the fourth quarter. Hackett also notched a hat trick with two more fourth-quarter goals, the second of which gave Elon its biggest lead of the day at 11-4. The Monarchs found two goals in the closing minutes, but the Phoenix held on for a comfortable victory.

 
Notable Numbers

• Vandiver has now recorded hat tricks in each of Elon's two games this season. It was her 12th time tallying three or more goals in a game. The redshirt junior also delivered a pair of assists to finish with a game-high five points.
• Vandiver also paced the Phoenix with a team-best five draw controls. It was her first game with five-plus draw controls since March 8, 2025.
• Hackett turned in her first hat trick since 2024 after missing last season due to injury. It was her 13th game with three-plus goals. She has seven points through Elon's first two games this season.
• Swietoniowski's hat trick was the second of her Elon career and her sixth multi-goal outing. The sophomore tied with Scalzo for a team-high five shots.
• Austin and Santa Barbara rounded out Elon's goal scorers. Santa Barbara has now scored in consecutive games while Austin's goal was her first of the season in her 2026 debut.
• Scalzo posted two assists to tie Vandiver for the team lead. The freshman has seven points through her first two games.
• Reagan Kuehn recorded her second career assist and first since April 6, 2024. Kuehn and Eliza Ritter led all Elon field players with four ground balls, with Vandiver and Santa Barbara both grabbing three each. 
• Ritter forced four Old Dominion turnovers, her most in a game with the Phoenix. Elon caused 10 turnovers on the day, seven players registering a forced turnover. 
• Caitlin Walsh made five saves in goal for Elon in a winning effort. She also picked up five ground balls. 
• Freshmen Brooke Holmes and Rebecca Lenner made their Elon debuts, with Lenner picking up her first career ground ball. 
• Elon's 25 ground balls were the most for the Phoenix since Feb. 28, 2020, against Campbell. The Phoenix also caused 10 Old Dominion turnovers. 
• Elon outshot Old Dominion, 26-16, and won both the ground ball (25-13) and draw control (11-7) battles.

Up Next
The Phoenix return to the road next Saturday for a game at ECU. The contest is scheduled for a 1 p.m. start.

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