PORTLAND, Ore. – First-year Ala Cross recorded three goals and five assists for eight points as Lewis & Clark College women's lacrosse defeated Aurora University 13-8 on Thursday evening at Griswold Stadium.
 
THE BASICS
 
Lewis & Clark 13, Aurora 8
(Lewis & Clark 4-0)
(Aurora 2-4)
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
 
Sophomore Aviana Gonzales led the River Otters with four goals and added three assists for seven points.
 
Senior Kate Meinhard caused a team-high five turnovers and tied Gonzales with four ground balls in the win. Sophomore Kaedance Stubbs led the team with four draw controls and added two caused turnovers and three ground balls.
 
First-year Phoebe Labuhn started in goal and played the first 30 minutes, making three saves to earn the win. Sophomore Kaitlin McRae finished with two saves in 30 minutes of relief.
 
Aurora's Ava Courtney scored twice in the first two minutes to give the Spartans a 2-0 lead, but Cross and Gonzales led Lewis & Clark's response. Cross scored at 8:25, assisted by Gonzales, and again at 7:22, assisted by junior Gloria Meehan, to tie the game at 2-2. Junior Sage Swegle put Lewis & Clark ahead 3-2 at 6:27 on a Cross assist before Aurora's Nicolina Smith converted a free-position shot to even the score at 3-3.
 
The River Otters then scored three goals in 46 seconds to take a 6-3 lead after the first quarter. Junior Finley Allen scored at 3:34 off a Meinhard assist. Sophomore Mack Searle followed at 3:08, assisted by Gonzales, and Cross scored unassisted at 2:48 to complete the run.
 
Lewis & Clark extended the lead in the second quarter. The Spartans' Smith scored a man-up goal at 11:58 to cut the deficit to 6-4, but Meinhard answered at 8:31 off a Gonzales assist to make it 7-4. Courtney scored at 6:40 for Aurora before Gonzales tallied at 5:06, assisted by Cross, to make it 8-5. Allen scored at 3:01 off another Cross assist, and Gonzales closed the half at 0:28 on a Swegle assist to give the River Otters a 10-5 lead at halftime.
 
Aurora outscored Lewis & Clark 2-0 in the third quarter. Eva Taute converted a man-up free-position shot at 5:42, and Smith added a man-up goal at 3:42, assisted by Kara Middleton, to make it 10-7.
 
Smith scored at 8:21 of the fourth quarter to pull Aurora within 10-8. Lewis & Clark responded with three straight goals to close the game. Swegle scored on a man-up free-position shot at 6:14. Gonzales then added consecutive goals at 5:39 and 5:01, both assisted by Cross, to set the final score at 13-8.
 
BY THE NUMBERS
 

• Six River Otters scored. Swegle and Allen each finished with two goals to join Gonzales and Cross with multiple goals, while Meinhard and Searle added one goal each.
• Lewis & Clark outshot Aurora 30-16 and held a 29-23 advantage in ground balls.
• Meehan recorded her first collegiate point with her first career assist on Cross' goal that tied the game at 2-2.
• Cross recorded eight points in consecutive games and set a career high with five assists.

 
WHO'S NEXT
 
Lewis & Clark hosts Occidental College on Saturday at 1 p.m. to continue its three-game homestand.