FAYETTEVILLE, NC – The Pride women's lacrosse team (7-2, 3-1 USA South) traveled to take on the Monarchs of Methodist University (6-4, 0-3 USA South) in a USA South showdown on Wednesday afternoon. The Pride and Monarchs played the entire game close before Alexa Besch scored with 3:47 left to play to lift Greensboro to a 9-8 victory.
Ashlynn Parks gave the Pride a, 1-0, lead just fifty-five seconds into the game when she beat the Methodist keeper off a feed from Nadya Fedun.
After Methodist knotted the game at 1-1, Pride freshman Natalie Ritchey gave Greensboro a brief, 2-1, lead before the Monarch answered right back to tie the game once again.
Greensboro was then able to pull out to a two goal lead at 4-2 with seven minutes to play in the first half. With 9:12 showing on the clock, Fedun took a pass from Ritchey to give Greensboro the lead before Kirstin Norris extended the lead to 4-2 two minutes later.
The Monarchs were then able to score three unanswered goals to take the lead at 5-4 before Norris tickled the nylon for a second time sending the game into the intermission period tied at 5-5.
Coming out of the intermission period, Natalie Ritchey found Amira Khatib to regain the lead for Greensboro.
Greensboro then maintained the one goal lead until Norris extended the margin back to two goals at 8-6 with fewer than ten minutes to play in the contest.
Over the course of the final 9:30 of playing time, Methodist rallied back to tie the game at 8-8 before Besch scored the decisive goal with 3:47 showing on the game clock.
Greensboro was outshot in the game, 28-16, but junior goalkeeper Kaleigh Hemstock had another solid outing in goal by stopping eight shots.
Norris led the way for Greensboro College with four goals while Nadya Fedun, Natalie Ritchey, Alexa Besch, Amira Khatib, and Ashlynn Parks also found the goal column. Norris also possessed a team high eight draw controls.
The Pride is slated to return to the field for a third consecutive day on Thursday afternoon. The Pride will welcome the Yellow Jackets of Randolph Macon to Pride Field at 3:00 PM. For the latest on the Greensboro College women's lacrosse team, continue to follow www.greensborocollegesports.com.
