INDIANAPOLIS – All it needed was a boost, and that is exactly what Riley McClure and Jess Soenen provided in the second half, as the No. 12 UIndy women's lacrosse team (12-1, 8-0 GLIAC) ran away from visiting McKendree University (7-6, 6-3 GLIAC) to win, 22-7.
 
The Greyhounds complete the season sweep of the Bearcats, scoring 22 times in each contest.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
The McKendree defense gave the UIndy attack some fits in the early going, forcing 11 turnovers in just over 10 minutes action. Bearcat keeper Clara Andrews made three saves on the Greyhounds' first six shots, as the teams were tied at three apiece after 14 minutes.
 
Lauryn Hardoy took matters into her hands, rattling off three consecutive goals in a 2:39 span to kick off a 5-0 run that was capped by scores from Krista Temple and Julia O'Brien. McKendree scored two of the final three goals of the half to build some momentum heading into halftime, with UIndy leading, 9-5.
 
What was a sluggish start to open the game for UIndy, it was the exact opposite after halftime, as the Greyhounds would eventually outscore the Bearcats, 13-2, in the second half. McKendree found the back of the cage less than eight minutes in to cut the UIndy advantage to 10-7, before Soenen tacked on two goals of her own moments later.
 
The Greyhounds scored the final 12 goals of the contest, including Grace Gunneson adding her fourth of the day in the final minute.
 
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Hardoy and Soenen combined for half of the Greyhound goals on Sunday, with the latter scoring four times in the second half. Soenen has now scored five goals in each of the past three contests, while she finished with a season-best six points against McKendree.
 
Lather. Rinse. Repeat. As is the saying to when it comes to discussing junior defender Riley McClure, who recorded five caused turnovers, five ground balls, and five draw controls in the win over the Bearcats. The Ancaster, Ontario product is now just four caused turnovers and eight ground balls from matching her 2018 total, which are already program records.
 
Keeper Cassidy King kept her momentum alive and well in conference action on Sunday, racking up another 10 saves, while also causing three turnovers and scooping up three ground balls. The freshman out of Canandaigua, N.Y. now sports a .650 save percentage in eight GLIAC contests this season, while allowing a miniscule 3.5 goals per game.
 
MORE NOTES
Prior to the game, the two teams repped suicide prevention awareness t-shirts in Lax-4-Life, Inc.'s initiative across all levels of lacrosse* … McKendree attacker Kathryn Albrecht tallied four goals on Sunday and now leads the Bearcats with 31 scores this season … overall, UIndy forced 25 McKendree turnovers, including eight on the clear … after losing the draw control battle at halftime, Peyton Romig led the surge in the second half to give UIndy the 20-10 advantage by the final horn.
 
HOUND BYTES
"A little adversity," head coach James Delaney said after the win. "But our girls got it together on the field and we didn't have to take any timeouts. We really came out in the second half with a purpose and bought into the adjustments we made.
 
"We talked about checking in mentally and just winning the draws," Delaney said of what he told the team at halftime. "When we're winning draws, our offense gets rolling and we're a really hard team to stop. Romig and McClure really figured it out in the second half and did a great job."
 
Delaney was quick to give praise to King between the pipes. "Not only is she one of the best goalies in the conference – if not, the best goalie in the conference – she is one of the best goalies in the country."
 
UP NEXT
The Greyhounds will play their final home game of the regular season this coming Friday when Ashland visits Key Stadium for a 7 p.m. battle. UIndy will honor 12 seniors, including 10 from the inaugural class that began the women's lacrosse program in 2016.
 
*If you are struggling with your mental health, please do not be afraid to seek help. The National Suicide Prevention Hotline is available 24 hours, seven days a week for anyone in need of someone to talk or help at 1-800-273-8255. Remember you are not alone.