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HIGH POINT — High Point University women’s lacrosse freshman attacker Shannon Smith scored her first collegiate game-winning goal under highly memorable circumstances Wednesday.
Smith took a pass from Mena Loescher and whipped in a shot from close range with 1:40 left in double-overtime as the Panthers edged Winthrop for a 13-12 victory after squandering a six-goal lead in the fourth quarter of the Big South opener for both teams at Vert Stadium.
“It felt amazing knowing I helped my team get the win,” Smith said.
Loescher, the Panthers’ leading scorer, attacked on the left slide of the goal, spun away from a double team and found Smith open in the crease.
“We were doing one of our plays with picks and cutting and I found the open space,” Smith said. “Mena was trying to pull the defense and it worked.”
HPU won the draw control for the second overtime and didn’t let Winthrop (3-4, 0-1) have possession.
“We got the ball first, and that’s huge, because if we hadn’t, things might have come out different,” Smith said.
The Panthers dodged calamity late in the first overtime after losing possession on a shot-clock violation with about 30 seconds left. Winthrop was awarded free position shots twice in the last 12.6 seconds and with 2 seconds left, but Panthers goalie Taylor Suplee made saves on both.
“They were pretty tough, but I was lucky that my defense got in there pretty quickly and helped me out a little bit,’ said Suplee, who made 10 saves. “I was just looking for the ball.
The win snapped a five-match losing streak as the Panthers improved to 2-6.
“The second season is really important and we’re starting it off strong and I’m happy about that,” Suplee said.
Winthrop also had possession at the end of regulation after HPU committed a turnover with 35 seconds left but the Panthers defense smothered the Eagles attack and forced a turnover in the last five seconds.
Loescher and Pia Cavallaro led the Panthers with three goals each. Smith and Emma Nowakowski had two each. Miles Jordan, Kay Rosselli, and Reese Dowgiallo had one apiece.
Loescher’s assist at the end was her third of the game. Cavallaro and Jordan dished two each. Emma Genovese, who was helped off the field after suffering a leg injury in a collision with 10:37 left in the fourth quarter, and Smith had one each.
Winthrop held a 4-3 lead after one period. HPU dominated the second as it scored all five goals for a 8-4 margin at the half and increased it to 12-6 with 1:36 left in the third quarter. The Panthers didn’t score again until the second overtime while Winthrop went on a 6-0 run in the last 13:45 of regulation, with the last four goals on free position shots.
“I’m so proud of the fight and resilience this team showed late in the game when nothing seemed to be going our way,” HPU head coach Lyndsey Boswell said. “Taylor made huge stops for us, she’s amazing. Our middies worked tirelessly for answers on the circle, and our attackers stepped up in big time scoring plays. We have yet to put 60 minutes together but as we start this new phase of our season with a lot of lessons learned, I’m happy for this group to be 1-0.”
HPU continues conference play at Mercer on Saturday.
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