WALESKA, Ga. – Piedmont women’s lacrosse was unable to fend off a late rally from NAIA opponent Reinhardt in an early Saturday afternoon 15-12 road loss.
Piedmont led early in the fourth quarter of a back-and-forth battle, but the Eagles closed with a 4-0 run over the final 8:44 of regulation to take the win.
Seniors Merryn Bumpass and Ava Trankina paced the Piedmont offense, with Bumpass tallying four goals while Trankina added three goals and an assist. Sophomore Savannah Limehouse pitched in with three goals as well.
It was the Lions who struck first, with Trankina finding a goal off an assist from Aly Reece. After both teams answered back and forth, it was Limehouse’s first goal of the day that gave Piedmont a 3-2 lead going to the second quarter.
Neither side was able to break away until a 4-0 Piedmont run late in the first half book ended by Limehouse’s second and third goals of the day as the Lions took an 8-6 edge to the halftime break.
Although the Eagles scored twice in a row to begin the second half and knot the score at 10-10, Piedmont immediately responded with back-to-back goals by Bumpass to retake the lead 12-10.
However, the back-and-forth continued with Reinhardt adding three straight to regain the lead at 11-10 before the Lions added two more to lead 12-11 early in the fourth quarter.
Unfortunately, the Piedmont offense was held in check over the final 11:19 as the Eagles made the final run and closed the door.
Up next, the Lions will open their home schedule, hosting Sewanee next Saturday, Feb. 22 at 12 p.m.
TURNING POINT:
– Reinhardt ended the game with four unanswered goals to turn a 12-11 deficit into a 15-12 win.
STANDOUT PERFORMANCES:
– Bumpass (4), Trankina (3) and Limehouse (3) combined to score 10 of Piedmont’s 12 goals.
– Although she scored just one goal, Clara Welch led the Lions with 10 ground balls.
– Rachel Verner added nine saves.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE:
– It was an evenly matched game, with Reinhardt holding a narrow 24-23 edge in shots on goal.
