CLEMSON – The No. 15 Clemson Tigers finished their five-game homestand with a sure-footed 15-4 win over Eastern Carolina at the Clemson Lacrosse Complex on Tuesday.
With the win, the Tigers notched their fourth consecutive victory and added to their 69-17 victory margin over their opponents in the past nine days. It marks the second-longest winning streak of this season after the six-win stretch to start the season.
A big part of the Tigers’ success against their latest opponents has come from offensive dynamism. After outscoring California 19-3 on Sunday, the Tigers (10-4) did not lose any steam Tuesday. Clemson’s 15 goals came from 36 shots to the Pirates’ 12. They also generated eight assists to Eastern Carolina’s two.
With this kind of shot production, it was nearly impossible for the Pirates (3-7) to ever get involved in the game.
With 12:19 left in the first quarter, graduate attacker Lindsey Marshall opened all scoring with her 40th goal of the season. However, her statistics did not read “40” for long. The veteran added another goal with 3:50 left in the first quarter and another in the third for her eighth hat trick of the season. She finished with four total goals and an assist.
With Tuesday’s performance, Marshall is now two goals away from her career high of 45 in a season with three guaranteed games still to play for the Tigers. Marshall and teammate Kayla McLeod, a sophomore, are both currently ranked in the ACC Top 10 for total goals scored and goals per game.
McLeod assisted Marshall’s second goal and added two first-half goals of her own, in addition to serving two assists. With her first goal, McLeod became the all-time leading scorer in Clemson history with 68 career goals in two seasons.
Regan Byrne, Natalie Shurtleff and Brooke Goldstein also added goals in the first two quarters to cement a 7-2 lead at the break.
ECU’s Maya Koebke, Rachel Chessock and Riley Matthiesen added four goals for the Pirates while their defense forced 14 Clemson turnovers throughout the game, but it was not enough to harness the Tigers, especially in the second half.
Clemson went on a 6-0 run after the break thanks to goals from Marshall, Goldstein, senior Lexi Edmonds and graduate Bridget Babcock. The Pirates answered with two second-half goals, but it was not enough to break down the deficit.
Defensively, the Tigers forced 17 turnovers and only allowed 10 Pirates shots on goal in comparison to Clemson’s 27. Senior keeper Emily Lamparter started in the cage for the Tigers and recorded five saves on only three goals allowed. She was replaced by Gigi Adamson in the fourth, who allowed one goal.
Jaime Behar served as the keeper for the Pirates and allowed 15 goals with 12 saves.
Up Next
Clemson needs Lamparter, Marshall, McLeod and the rest of the Tigers team to bring the energy again next Saturday, when the Tigers play their first game away from the Clemson Lacrosse Complex in two weeks. Clemson will travel to take on the Virginia Tech Hokies (7-6, 2-4) in Blacksburg, Va., at 5 p.m. in hopes of extending their winning streak to five.
–Photo courtesy of Clemson Athletics