ROMEOVILLE, Ill. – The women's lacrosse team overcame a first half deficit on the road in Romeoville, Illinois, where they took Lewis University down 10-5 in GLVC action on Friday, April 10th.
Score: McKendree University 10, Lewis University 5
Record: Bearcats 9-3, 1-1 GLVC | Flyers 6-5, 0-2 GLVC
HOW IT HAPPENED
McKendree got themselves on the board first with senior attacker Jayna Barnden (Calgary, Alberta, Canada) driving around traffic to find the upper corner within the posts. After a quick response by the Lewis offense, Barnden once again found an open spot close to the net and made do on the feed by the junior midfielder Mackenzie Stroisch (Arnold, Mo.). Yet, the Flyers tied up the game at two apiece with a little over a minute left to go in the first quarter.
The second period of play slowed down a tad, with Barnden scoring the Bearcats' only goal in the quarter for the early hat-trick. The Flyers tacked on two more in the frame to hold a 4-3 edge heading into halftime
Lewis seemed to find their groove, as they opened up the second half with their fifth goal of the game four and a half minutes in to take a two-point lead. However, the tides would significantly shift in favor of McKendree, while the visiting Bearcats held the home Flyers scoreless the rest of the way.
Freshman attacker Elora Waardenburg (Cobble Hill, British Columbia, Canada) scored two of the team's four goals to close out the third period of play up by a pair. To seal the deal in the final quarter of regulation, Stroisch earned her second scoring possession of the match, while sophomore attacker Ariyah LaFrance (Akwesasne, N.Y.) caught the high pass to get her first of the contest. Junior midfielder Lexi Macleod (Cold Lake, Alberta, Canada) put the game away for good with a curling drive to the goalie crease and rifled it in to eventually win the game 10-5.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
• Barnden led with a hat-trick of three goals on 10 shot attempts overall and nine on the goal to go with a ground ball, a caused turnover, and a draw control.
• Stroisch and Waardenburg each came away with two recorded goals, with the former also adding an assist, three ground balls, three caused turnovers, and three draw controls.
• Junior goalkeeper Amber Hayden (Woburn, Mass.) tallied 12 saves, four ground balls and a caused turnover in all 60:00 minuted of action.
• McKendree outshot Lewis 31-27 overall and 18-12 on the goal.
• The Bearcats was 20-of-22 (90.9%) on clear attempts while the Flyers were 22-of-30 (73.3%).
• McKendree won the draw control battle 11-6.
• This marks the Bearcats' first GLVC win of the 2026 season, and the first since beating William Jewell College 21-7 in Liberty, Missouri on April 12th of 2024.
UP NEXT
McKendree will be back in action on Sunday, April 12th, as they take the No.3 University of Indianapolis at 10:00 AM CT at the Key Stadium/Kiesel Field in Indianapolis, Indiana.
The game will be streamed live or on-demand on the GLVC Sports Network with a subscription/download purchase required. Live stats will also be provided to the public. Tickets can be purchased at athletics.uindy.edu.
Make sure to keep up with McKendree University Women's Lacrosse on Facebook, X (Twitter), and Instagram. #GLVCwlax | #D2lax
For more updates and information on Bearcat Athletics, please continue to visit McKBearcats.com and follow us on Facebook, X (Twitter), and Instagram.
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