WEST CHESTER, Pa.- Keri Barnett (Glenolden, Pa./Archbishop Carroll) scored 10 goals to help lead the third-ranked West Chester University women's lacrosse team (7-0, 3-0) to a 22-11 victory over Millersville (5-2, 1-1) on Wednesday afternoon.
Barnett's 10 goals are a new career high for the senior and are tied for the second most goals in a game in program history, trailing only Katelyn Martin's 11-goal effort against Gannon in March 2005. Barnett is the second WCU player in the last two seasons to score 10 goals in a single game, joining
Hannah Stanislawczyk, who scored 10 in a win at Shepherd on April 27, 2024. Barnett also scored her 200th career goal as she became just the fifth player in team history to eclipse 200 goals.
West Chester outscored Millersville 7-1 in the fourth quarter to break open a 15-10 game heading into the fourth after the two sides scored five goals each in a back-and-forth third quarter. Millersville trailed by as few as four goals with a minute to play in the third before Barnett scored her seventh goal of the afternoon with 51 seconds to play in the frame off an assist from
Morgan McClintock (Chadds Ford, Pa./Garnet Valley) to give the hosts a 15-10 lead after 45 minutes.
Sydney Wasdick (Pottsgrove, Pa./Pottsgrove) scored five goals in the win, while
Madeline Edinger (Perkasie, Pa./Pennridge) added three, along with two from
Kendall Fortune (Jarrettsville, Md./North Harford) and one each from
Audrey Miller (Sinking Spring, Pa./Wilson) and
Avery Roberts (Mantua, N.J./Clearview).
Wasdick led West Chester in assists to finish with eight points, while Barnett added an assist of her own for 11 points, which ties her career-high from April 2022 win over Shepherd, and she is tied for the ninth most in a single game in team history. Wasdick also led West Chester in draw controls with seven and five ground balls, while
Caitlin Trickett (Sinking Spring, Pa./Wilson) caused a team-best three turnovers in the win.
Ella Linthicum led Millersville in scoring four goals, while Kaleigh Funk scored three, along with two each from Ashlyn Simonetti and Rachel Keeney. Keeney was a problem for the Golden Ram defense throughout the day as the speedy midfielder also added five assists and came away with two ground balls and six draw controls in the loss.
In the loss, Millersville scored over 11 goals for just the fourth time since 2007 and the third time since 2022. It is also the second most goals the Marauders have scored in these four games, trailing only a team record 14 in a 14-13 win over the Golden Rams in 1989 and 12 in a 24-12 victory at Millersville in April 2023.
West Chester and Millersville traded goals through the first 11 minutes. Barnett scored two of the Golden Rams' three goals to start the game, and the Golden Rams found themselves tied at 3-3 with four minutes to play in the first quarter.
West Chester closed the first on a 3-1 run led by goals from Barnett, Wasdick, and Edinger
to take a 6-4 lead into the second quarter.
Barnett scored the first two goals of the second quarter as West Chester stretched its lead to 8-4 before the Marauders got a goal back on a free position with 6:40 to play in the first half.
This tally was the visitors' final goal of the first half as West Chester tallied two more goals from Roberts
and Wasdick to carry a 10-5 lead into the halftime break.
West Chester ended the first half with a 15-7 lead in shots, a 13-7 lead in shots on goal, and an 11-6 lead in draw controls.
Morgan Koons (Mountain Top, Pa./Crestwood) got the start and made two saves in the first half to help West Chester hold its five-goal advantage at the midway point.
West Chester and Millersville traded goals throughout the third quarter as West Chester carried a 15-10 lead into the fourth quarter.
Barnett scored two of the first three goals of the fourth quarter to give the Golden Rams a 17-11 lead before Edinger intercepted a pass from the Marauders goalkeeper and sprinted downfield to make it an 18-11 in favor of the Golden Rams, which forced a Marauder timeout.
Out of the timeout, West Chester won the draw and scored quickly as Wasdick tallied her fifth of the day as part of a run, which saw the Golden Rams take a 21-11 lead with 4:11 to play before Barnett added one more goal with 1:32 to play in the 22-11 victory.
KC O'Neill made four saves in 56 minutes of action in goal before McKenna Billie entered for the final five minutes. Koons and
Hannah Cornelius (5-0) (Medford, N.J./Shawnee) split the game in goal, with Koons making two saves in the first half while Cornelius made four stops in the second half to secure the victory.
West Chester ended the game with a 29-19 lead in shots, a 26-17 lead in shots on goal, and a 16-13 lead in turnovers after playing a turnover-free fourth quarter. West Chester was 11-for-12 on clear attempts, while Millersville went just 8-for-12 on its clears, including a 4-for-7 effort in the final three quarters.
The third-ranked Golden Rams also ended the game with a 17-15 lead in ground balls and a 20-16 lead in draw controls thanks to a 9-2 advantage in the first quarter.
Up Next:
West Chester will conclude its homestand next Wednesday afternoon against No. 12 Kutztown beginning at 4 p.m.
