No. 18 USC Lacrosse Racks Up 17-10 Win Over Arizona State

LOS ANGELES – The 18th-ranked USC lacrosse team (7-2, 4-1 Pac-12) topped Arizona State (4-4, 3-2) by a 17-10 count on United Airlines Field at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on Friday, March 25.
 
KEY PLAYERS

• Gr. midfielder Kelsey Huff delivered her seventh hat trick of the season (30th career) and finished with her third six-goal game of the spring. She moves into fourth all-time for career points at USC with 180 (156g, 24a) ahead of Kylie Drexel (2014-17, 175 points) and is now one goal shy of matching Caroline deLyra (2013-16, 157g) for second in school history for career goals. Huff also had four ground balls and the highlight of the game with a behind-the-back goal.
• Fr. midfielder Maddie Dora put up a career-high six points with career marks of three goals for her first hat trick and three assists. She becomes the 32nd Trojan in school history to join the hat-trick club.
• So. attacker Shelby Tilton matched her career high of five points with two goals and a career-best three assists.
• Jr. defender Olivia Dooley finished with a career-high six caused turnovers; one shy of the school record (7 by Kerrigan Miller in 2018) and had three ground balls. 
• Jr. defender Kaleigh Brennan had four ground balls and caused two turnovers.
• Jr. goalie Kait Devir produced 10 saves for her seventh-career victory and had three ground balls.
• For Arizona State, three players had multiple-goal games. Carley Adams and Emily Munro each had two goals and one assist apiece. Zoe Mazur had five draw controls. Emily Glagolev scored a goal and dished out three assists. In goal, Katie Vahle had eight saves in the loss.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Trojans out-shot the Sun Devils, 31-27, and won the battle for loose balls and turnovers with a 27-20 edge in ground balls. ASU had the advantage in the center circle with a 19-12 count in draw controls.
• The teams battled to a three-all draw in the first quarter. USC got its first goal from Tilton on an eight-meter attempt and then Tilton delivered assists on goals by Claudia Shevitz and Isabelle Vitale.
• Huff's first goal of the day put the Trojans in front, 5-3, but Adams and Munro scored back-to-back goals to pull the Sun Devils even at five-all in the second quarter. USC responded to score the next four, which included a low-to-high riser and the back-to-back beauty from Huff. The Trojans rolled out to a 9-5 lead, but ASU got one more with 25 seconds left in the half to trim the lead to three, 9-6, at the big break.
• The third quarter was evenly contested in the midfield. Each team won four draws and each took five shots. Both USC and ASU were 5-for-6 on clears in the third, but behind two goals from Huff, another from Tilton, and one more by Ella Heaney, the Trojans emerged with a 13-9 lead when the dust settled on the third.
• Adams scored the only ASU goal of the fourth quarter. Maggie Brown's goal pushed USC out to a 14-10 lead before Huff racked up her sixth goal, Shevitz scored again, and Dora capped the day with her hat trick for a 17-10 final.

UP NEXT

• USC heads into the Midwest for a matchup with No. 12 Michigan (9-1, 1-0 Big Ten) at the U-M Lacrosse Stadium in Ann Arbor, Mich., set for noon ET (9 a.m. PT) on Sunday, April 3. The Trojans and Wolverines will meet for the third time.

GAME NOTES

• USC improves to 7-1 all-time against Arizona State and has won the last two meetings.
• The Trojans improve to 5-3 all-time in games played at the LA Memorial Coliseum (60-17 in all home games).
• USC goes to 78-22 in games in which it is ranked.

For more information on the USC women's lacrosse team, a complete schedule, and results, please visit USCTrojans.com. Fans of the Women of Troy can follow the team on Instagram and on Twitter @USCTrojansLax.