ANNAPOLIS, Md. – The Navy women's lacrosse team (2-0) posted a 14-8 victory over George Mason (0-2) on Thursday evening at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium. Eight Mids scored goals in the win, including five with multiple scores.
 
"I felt like we did great," head coach Cindy Timchal said. "We are in the middle of an academic week. We have another game in two days, but there are no excuses. George Mason is always a tough game – we played them twice last year. They came in ready to play. There were some things we could improve on. Navy women's lacrosse is not perfect, so we are going to continue to work on that. However, I think it was a complete team effort and I am proud of our team."
 
Navy tallied 20 points on 14 goals and six assists. The Midshipmen converted six free position attempts on the evening, tying for the fifth most in program history. Leelee Denton (Nashville, Tenn.) paced the offensive attack scoring five points on three goals and a pair of assists. The hat trick was the second in as many games for the sophomore. Lindsay Beardmore (Annapolis, Md.), Gil Eby (Towson, Md.), Lola Leone (Bay Shore, N.Y.), and Emily Messinese (Manchester, Md.) netted two goals apiece. Kasey Dietzel (Warrington, Pa.) tied Denton with a team-high two assists on the night.
 
Messinese led the team with six ground balls, while adding a team-high three caused turnovers and a pair of draw controls. Dietzel led the team with seven draws and Grace Loughery (Perkasie, Pa.) matched Messinese with three caused turnovers.
 
Jo Torres (Prince Frederick, Md.) earned her second win of the young season, working a complete game between the pipes. The sophomore finished the game with six saves and a ground ball.
 
For the visitors, George Mason's Olivia O'Brien led all scorers with four goals in the contest, also leading the Patriots in draw controls with four.
 
Navy was the first team to scratch the scoreboard, taking a 2-0 advantage in the first quarter. Eby opened the scoring by converting a free-position opportunity. Leone followed with her first goal of the evening to put the Midshipmen in front 2-0 through one quarter.
 
In the second quarter, Beardmore scored back-to-back goals to open the frame and push the Navy advantage to 4-0. Following a Mason goal, the Mids used a 3-0 run to extend the lead to 7-1. Denton, Eby and Leone found the back of the net for the Midshipmen. The Patriots used a free-position goal to trim the margin to 7-2, but Denton and Dietzel scored back-to-back goals to give the Mids a seven-goal edge. George Mason sent the game into halftime, scoring with 12 ticks on the clock to cut the margin to 9-3 in favor of Navy.
 
The second half opened with goals by Isabelle Thornburg (Alexandria, Va.) and Messinese, but back-to-back goals by the visitors trimmed the Mids' advantage to 11-5. Denton closed out the third quarter with third goal of the game to give the sophomore her second hat trick in as many games in 2022.
 
In the fourth quarter, George Mason outscored Navy, 3-2, but the Mids were able to hold on for the six-point victory. Messinese scored her second goal of the game to start the fourth, but Mason answered with a free-position goal. Eloise Gebert (Pottstown, Pa.) scored her first collegiate goal on a free-position opportunity to put Navy in front 14-6. The Patriots used a pair of goals by O'Brien to provide the final margin of 14-8.
 
Navy returns to action on Saturday, Feb. 19, as the Midshipmen welcome George Washington (0-0) to Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium for a nonconference game. Opening draw is slated for 4:00 p.m. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+ and live stats will be available.