SAINT LEO, Fla. – The 18th-ranked Saint Leo University women's lacrosse team earned another upset victory over a ranked opponent on Saturday afternoon with a 15-10 home victory over #10 Lynn University. The Lions got off to a hot start with a 4-0 run to open the game en route to its eighth win of the season as they improved to 8-5 overall and evened up their SSC record at 2-2.

Fiona McLaughlin scored a game-high four goals followed by Briana Bellando with three goals. Jana Nuss, Sophia Wood, and Marina Dean also added a pair of goals each. Ava Valenti and Maria Palomba combined for two goals. Valenti had the only two assists in the game for the Lions. Five of the Lions 15 goals came on free-position shots. Jessica Harclerode made nine saves in the victory.
 
#18 SAINT LEO 15, #10 LYNN 10

• Saint Leo opened the game on a 4-0 run. Briana Bellando wasted no time getting the Lions on the board as she registered her first goal of the game in the first 32 seconds of the game. Free-position goals by McLaughlin and Dean put the home team up 3-0. The Lions took advantage of a yellow card to the Fighting Knights as Ava Valenti fired home a free-position goal to put the home team up 4-0.
• After Lynn got on the board, the Lions responded with goals by Palomba, McLaughlin, and Sophia wood gave the home team a six-goal advantage.
• Lynn closed out the scoring of the opening quarter with its second goal of the game at the 1:08 mark.
• The Fighting Knights used a 2-1 second quarter to cut the Lions lead in half as the Lynn goalie made six saves. Bellando was the only Lion to put one past the visiting goalie in the second quarter.
• The Lions took an 8-4 lead into the halftime break.
• Jana Nuss found the back of the net for the first time in the game at the 13:49 mark of the third quarter. Lynn quickly responded with a women down goal to make it a 9-5 game.
• Back-to-back goals by McLaughlin and Bellando in the third put the home back team up by six goals, a lead they had not seen since early in the second quarter.
• Over the final eight minutes of the third quarter Lynn outscored the home team 3-1 to cut the Lions advantage to four goals entering the final 15 minutes.
• McLaughlin's final goal of the game came at the 13:22 mark of the fourth quarter. Lynn's Becca Clark scored back-to-back goals for the visitors as she cut the home team's lead to 13-10.
• Harclerode made a pair of crucial saves over the final six plus minutes of the game as Jana Nuss and Marina Dean scored to put the final touches on the top-10 victory for the Lions.

UP NEXT
Saint Leo returns to the field on Wednesday as it hosts the Sailfish of Palm Beach Atlantic. The opening draw is set for 4 p.m. at University Turf Stadium.