Galica Dominates the Draw in 16-8 Win over VCU

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — The No. 11 Virginia women’s lacrosse team (10-3, 3-3 ACC) blew past VCU (4-9, 3-2 A10) in a game that featured a seven-point performance from Katia Carnevale and a dominant showing from Kate Galica in the draw circle on Wednesday night (April 3) at Klöckner Stadium.

Carnevale (5g, 2a) led a potent Cavalier attack with seven points to tie a season-high for the grad transfer. Mackenzie Hoeg (4g) matched a season-high of her own while Kate Miller (3g, 2a) and Kiki Shaw (2g) each found the back of the net on multiple occasions. Morgan Schwab pitched in a pair of assists, and freshmen Madison Alaimo (1g, 2a) and Jenna Dinardo (1g) each found their way on to the scoresheet as well.

Cavalier freshman Kate Galica was exceptional in the draw circle pulling down a total of 11 for her team, a mark that is tied for the sixth-highest single-game total in Virginia history. Kate Miller’s six draw controls helped Virginia secure an enormous 21-7 advantage in the circle.

Defensively, the Cavalier ride was smothering as the team forced VCU into six failed clearing attempts. Hoeg, Alaimo and Carnevale—all primarily attacking players—each came up with a pair of caused turnovers. In 45 minutes of action between the pipes, Mel Josephson recorded five saves on 10 goal-bound efforts.

How it Happened
Virginia scored the first two goals of the game courtesy of Hoeg and Carnevale. VCU answered with a goal of its own, but Mel Josephson smothered a Rams’ free-position attempt minutes later to preserve a one-goal cushion. Hoeg kept the momentum in Virginia’s favor as she put her second goal away on a behind-the-back shot. The first quarter would end with Virginia leading by a score of 4-3.

Dinardo extended her goal streak to 13 games as she put away a free-position shot in the bottom left corner to open the second quarter. After Hoeg secured her hat trick, Miller picked up her fifth draw control, marking a career-high performance for the junior. Following a short-handed stop on defense, the Cavaliers capped a nine-goal run as Miller notched her second of the day to extend the Virginia lead to 10 at the half.

Virginia bounced back from a Rams goal to open the second half, as Miller netted her third to secure her third hat trick of the season. Both teams continued to trade possessions for the third quarter. Shaw scored to push the lead back to ten with the Cavaliers up 15-5 at the end of quarter three.

Alaimo opened the fourth quarter with a free-position goal after Galica picked up her eighth draw control of the evening, to tie her previous career-high. Despite three unanswered goals from the Rams, Virginia ran out the clock to cruise to a 16-8 victory. 

From Head Coach Sonia LaMonica:
“The team stepped out and played really hard-nosed and tough. They came out on a mission. I think we really wanted to respond after a two-game losing streak. It’s really important for us to get back to just playing our game defensively. I thought we did a pretty good job of that today, particularly in that second quarter. That set the stage and allowed us to really pull away and Kate on the draws today was just phenomenal.”

 With The Win:

• Virginia notches its 10^th victory of the season moving to 10-3 overall
• The Cavaliers complete their non-conference schedule with an unblemished record of 7-0 outside of ACC play
• UVA moves to 4-0 all-time against VCU

Additional Notes

• Kate Galica pulled down 11 total draw controls to match the sixth-highest single-game total in UVA history
• Galica’s 55 draw controls on the season mark the second-highest single-season total among UVA freshmen in program history
• Kate Miller recorded a career-high six draw controls
• Miller recorded a season-high three goals, her fourth career hat trick
• Katia Carnevale marked her seventh game of the season scoring four goals or more
• With two assists on the night, Madison Alaimo totals 18 on the season a mark that ranks fourth-most all-time among Cavaliers in their freshman season
• With two assists tonight, Schwab’s season tally grows to 45, just seven from surpassing her single-season career-high which ranks second in the UVA record book

Up Next:
The Cavaliers will travel to Louisville, Ky. to take on Louisville, the first of the team’s three remaining ACC matchups. First draw from Louisville is set for 11:30 a.m.