Crooks stellar Wednesday afternoon as Hokies run past Phoenix 16-8 to wrap up non-conference playCrooks stellar Wednesday afternoon as Hokies run past Phoenix 16-8 to wrap up non-conference play
Lacrosse

Crooks stellar Wednesday afternoon as Hokies run past Phoenix 16-8 to wrap up non-conference play

BLACKSBURG – Playing on Thompson Field for the second time in four days, the Virginia Tech lacrosse team extended its winning streak to three Wednesday afternoon, easily moving past the visiting Elon Phoenix 16-8. 
 
Tech fell behind 2-0 within the first three minutes after Elon's Gillian Curran and Mae McGlynn before the trio of Mary Claire Byrne, Emma Crooks and Emma Harden each scored goals to give the Hokies their first lead. 
 
Kaley Thompson of Elon scored to even the game once again for the final time as the Hokies would go on a four-goal run to restore a lead that they would not relinquish. 
 
Sophomore Emma Crooks was outstanding again Wednesday, leading all players with six goals, bringing her career tally to 50. The squad's primary draw taker, Crooks also won six draws and grabbed a ground ball.
 
Along with Tech's other starting midfielders Paige Petty (four goals) and Mary Claire Byrne (one goal and two assists) the Hokies' midfielders accounted for 14 of the team's 23 points scored. 
 
The Hokies are 7-4 on the season and 0-1 in conference play as they set their sights on the ACC, with all six of their remaining games coming against conference foes. 
 
Elon fell to 2-7 with the result. Thompson led the Phoenix with four goals, the only player with more than one point in the game, and she also won six draws, another team high. In the loss, Paige Brown made 12 saves in goal. 
 
Quoting Coach Sung

  • We were prepared to play I thought after the big win Sunday and it showed. I'm glad we were able to get a lot of bodies in the game and saw some good performances out there so definitely a good result for us.
  • Emma Crooks has been unbelievable these past two games at Thompson Field. She had six goals today and six draws as well. She's been huge for us and has really stepped up and has made us an even more dangerous team.
  • After the first few minutes, the defense regrouped and Morgan made some saves and we got back to our best.
  • From here, we have to play every game like it's a tournament game. In this league there are no easy games and to be where we want to be, we're going to have to compete with these teams and we have a great chance to do that down the stretch. So, we'll prepare for Louisville on Saturday and make sure we have a good game plan for them. 

 
Inside the box score

  • Crooks tallied six points for fourth time in 2019, but scored six goals for just the first time since recording eight in a win over Campbell in 2018. 
  • On the draw circle, defender Elena Ricci had five draw controls for the fifth time in six games, bringing her season tally to 45, the second-best mark behind Crooks' 52. 
  • Tech's defense kept the Phoenix off of the board for nearly 23 minutes in the second half. After Elon scored back-to-back goals to bring them with four, Tech reeled off five straight scores to put the game out of reach. 
  • With her three assists, Julia Bolte recorded the 100thpoint of her career, joining Paige Petty as the only current Hokies to reach that mark. Bolte has 68 points in one and a half seasons in Blacksburg and also recorded 32 in 2017 as a member of the Oregon Ducks.


 

 
 
Game Notes

  • The win was the Hokies' third consecutive victory, their longest streak of the season. During the streak, Tech has scored 15-plus in each contest, also the first time that has occurred in 2019.
  • Tech wraps up the non-conference portion of the season with a 6-3 record ahead of six straight ACC contests to conclude the regular season.

 
What's next

  • The Hokies will continue their home stand with a matchup with Louisville on Saturday, March 23 at 1 p.m. from Thompson Field. That game can be seen on WatchESPN. 

 

Gallery: (3/20/2019) 2019 LACROSSE vs. ELON