HARRISONBURG, Va., March 28, 2007 -- Virginia senior Kate Breslin (Manhasset, N.Y./Manhasset) scored six first-half goals to help lead the fourth-ranked Cavaliers past number six James Madison in women's lacrosse Wednesday evening at the JMU Lacrosse Complex. Virginia improved to 9-1 as the Cavaliers ended a six-game JMU winning streak. The Dukes' record now stands at 6-2.

On a rainy night Breslin scored six of Virginia's first eight goals and got the first goal of the match just 45 seconds after the opening draw. The Cavaliers led 5-1 just 8:43 into the match, with sophomore Ashley McCulloch (Annandale, Va./W.T. Woodson) finishing the run with back-to-back goals at 22:51 and 21:17.

However, JMU rallied with a six-goal run spanning nine minutes as the Dukes pulled ahead 7-5 at 12:41. Five JMU players tallied goals, with junior Annie Wagner (Annapolis, Md./St. Paul's) scoring twice and seniors Lynlea Cronin (Columbia, Md./Wilde Lake), Maria Bosica (Ellicott City, Md./Mt. Hebron) and Kelly Berger (Columbia, Md./Hammond) and junior Emily Haller (Fallston, Md./John Carroll) each netting one goal. Virginia, however, scored six of the last seven goals of the half, with Breslin scoring four of them, and led 11-8 at intermission.

By the time the teams took the field for the start of the second half, the rain had picked up in intensity, making field conditions slippery and visibility difficult. It took almost nine minutes for the first goal of the second half. Virginia sophomore Blair Weymouth (Holderness, N.H./Taft) scored at 21:12 and senior Megan Havrilla (Devon, Pa./Conestoga) recorded a goal with 15:47 left to give the Cavaliers a 13-8 lead.

The Dukes responded with back-to-back goals in a span of just 18 seconds. Haller scored off a pass from junior Natasha Fuchs (Bay Shore, N.Y./Bay Shore) at 12:49. Then junior Julie Stone (Annandale, Va./Annandale) picked up a ground ball in Virginia territory and dished it to Wagner for a score at 12:31, closing the gap to 13-10. Each team scored three goals in the final 10:11. Despite out-shooting Virginia 12-9 in the second half, JMU got no closer than three goals the rest of the way.

Both JMU junior goalkeeper Kelly Wetzel (Catonsville, Md./Mount De Sales) and Virginia junior goalkeeper Kendall McBrearty (Alexandria, Va./St. Stephen's/St. Agnes) recorded five saves. In addition to her six goals, Breslin had an assist. Weymouth scored five goals for the Cavaliers. JMU's Wagner finished with six goals and Haller added three.

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Virginia's Kate Breslin scored six goals, all in the first half, to lead the Cavaliers (9-1) to a wild 16-13 win over James Madison (6-2). The game featured a number of runs, including a two 4-0 runs by Virginia that surrounded a 6-0 run by the Dukes in the first half. The Cavaliers won 15 draws, including five for Kate Breslin, while JMU had 16, led by four for Kelly Berger. Virginia took 28 shots to JMU's 27 as the two sides battled during a driving rain that started midway through the first half. After an 11-8 halftime, Virginia was able to push the margin up to five on three different occasions but the Dukes battled back to score the final two goals of the game for the final score of 16-13. Jessy Morgan led Virginia with four ground balls while Blair Weymouth added five goals.

JMU's Berger won the opening draw and drove to the cage, shooting but hitting the pipe in the first five seconds of the game. The ball rebounded out to the restraining line where Ashley McCulloch collected it and started a clear. In the Virginia offensive zone, McCulloch fed Breslin for the opening goal of the game which came 45 seconds into the contest. JMU responded with a goal less than a minute later as Brigid Strain won the draw and Tash Fuchs fed Annie Wagner.

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2007-03-29