PITTSBURGH, Pa. – Saint Joseph's women's lacrosse continued its strong start to Atlantic 10 action, using nine unanswered goals to push past Duquesne in a 16-10 win on Saturday afternoon.
 
The Hawks moved to 2-0 in A-10 play, a combined 35-10 advantage over conference foes in the early stages. Duquesne falls to 0-2 in the Atlantic 10.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• After scoring 19 goals without conceding, the Hawks started on the same path as Emma O'Neill opened the scoring in under two minutes.
• Riley Evans netted just 23 seconds later before Bonnie Yu completed a hat trick of goals from the SJU midfielders in a span of a minute to take a 3-0 lead.
• Despite the hot start, the Dukes were able to get a goal back four minutes later as the hosts sparked a 4-0 run over the remaining of the quarter to take a one-goal advantage after 15 minutes.
• Duquesne scored in the first 40 second of the second to extend its run to 5-0 before Sarah Groark's first tally cut the bleeding. However, two more goals from the Dukes gave them their largest lead of the afternoon at 7-4.
• A dicing run through the entire Hawk defense from Groark saw the sophomore dish it off to Lisa Ross for a tidy finish, while just moments later Ross would double her scoring with her second in 40 seconds to cut the deficit to one.
• The spark from Ross would set up a 6-0 run to end the half, led by the upperclassmen and finished by a host of newcomers. Kate Fuhrman tallied her first of the afternoon before Groark netted her second of the game with two minutes remaining. Alexa Capozzoli fired her third goal in the last two games before Groark netted a hat trick in the closing seconds of the quarter to give the Hawks a 10-7 halftime advantage.
• Capozzoli started where the Hawks left off, taking it solo as the rookie wrapped around the goal and fired low and past the Duquesne goalkeeper.
• Yu and O'Neill added to their tallies, the 9-0 run finally coming to a close as the Dukes were able to find the back of the net to cut the Hawk advantage to 13-8. SJU added a goal through Evans to take a 14-9 lead headed into the final frame.

 
GAME NOTES

• Sarah Groark continues to shine in her first season in the Crimson and Gray, adding a team-high four goals and three assists in the win. In the Hawks' three wins, Groark has scored nine goals and five assists.
• Riley Evans joined in the scoring with a hat trick of her own, her second of the year. The starting midfield for SJU combined for seven goals, each scoring at least twice.
• Maddie Yoder's seven-game scoring streak to start the season comes to a close as the sophomore registered an assist but failed to get on the scoring sheet.
• After scoring her first two goals of her career against George Mason, Alexa Capozzoli has now had back-to-back games with two goals after a 2G, 1A performance against the Dukes. Freshman counterpart Kate Fuhrman added a goal of her own.
• Jorden Concordia made eight saves in the decision.
• The Hawks held a 40-27 tally in shots, a 28-18 advantage in shots on goal.
• SJU was 22-30 in ground controls, Evans leading the way with 13.

 
UP NEXT

• The Hawks head to the nation's capital to take on George Washington on Wednesday, March 22. The first draw begins at 1 p.m.