LAURINBURG, N.C. - The Gannon women's lacrosse team wasted little time getting its offense rolling in 2008. Gannon exploded for 12 first-half goals and was never threatened in a 20-5 victory over Rollins (Fla.) Saturday afternoon on a neutral field at St. Andrews Presbyterian (N.C.) College.

Gannon opened the contest with eight consecutive goals in the first 12 minutes and 31 seconds. Taryn Millerd (Shortsville, N.Y./Midlakes), Colleen Dixon (Lafayette, N.Y./Lafayette), and Mary Eshenour (Waterloo, N.Y./Waterloo) tallied two goals each during the early 8-0 run.

Rollins finally stopped the bleeding with a goal at the 14:16 mark, but Gannon followed with the final four goals of the half to account for a 12-1 halftime lead.

Gannon put all doubts to rest early in the second half. The Lady Knights opened the final 30 minutes with four consecutive goals, increasing their lead to 16-1 with 19:58 to play.

Dixon led the Gannon offense with five goals. Millerd recorded three goals and three assists while Eshenour had three goals and two assists. Antonia Cianfrocco (Chittenango, N.Y./Chittenango) completed Gannon's group of hat trick performers with three goals. Christina Blasi (Pittsburgh, Pa./Seton-LaSalle) found the back of the net twice.

Kayla Nelson (Oswego, N.Y./Oswego) produced one goal and three assists. Sarah Belen (Oak Hill, Va./Oakton), Christina Alexander (Syracuse, N.Y./Westhill), and Carla Jemison (Versailles, N.Y./Gowanda) completed the scoring with one goal each.

Shauna Hutchinson (Islip Terrace, N.Y./East Islip) started in goal, making four saves and allowing one score in the first half. Acacia Cook (Clay, N.Y./Clay-NS) played the second half and made three saves while allowing five goals.

Gannon, ranked seventh in NCAA Division II, moved to 1-0 with its season-opening victory. Rollins dropped to 2-3. The Lady Knights return to action Sunday, March 2 at St. Andrews Presbyterian. Game time is scheduled for 1 p.m.

A complete box score from Saturday's match can be found at http://www.gannon.edu/sports/women/LACRO/STATS.HTM/GAME01.HTM

2008-03-02