CLINTON, S.C. – In the Presbyterian College lacrosse team's third consecutive matchup with an opponent from the MAC on Tuesday night, the Blue Hose fell to first-time adversary Eastern Michigan by a final tally of 19-10.

Serving as the home opener for head coach Eric Clakeley's roster after a two-game road trip in Ohio last week, PC couldn't hold on to a 4-2 second-period advantage and surrendered six straight EMU scores before the halftime break.

The Eagles would never trail after the 2:53 mark of the second quarter, sending Presbyterian to an 0-3 tab with a host of matches still on the radar.

Senior Willow Hammond boosted her career goal count to 89 in the loss by achieving her ninth all-time three-goal performance. She has now surpassed Sarah Marshall (2018-21) for sole possession of fourth place in PC's history books.

Only the first of a six-game homestand for the Scotsmen, they'll return to Bailey Memorial Stadium this weekend to take on Delaware State beginning at 11:00 AM.


 
HOW IT HAPPENED
 
- PC hung right with a stout offensive foe on Tuesday, as both clubs ended the contest with the same number of shots-on-goal (24). The total shot count ended at 35-31 in EMU's favor, with Eagle keeper Maddie Porter carrying the load on 14 saves.

- Eastern Michigan connected on seven of their 13 free-position looks, narrowly edging the Blue Hose in draws at 17-14. Presby forced 11 turnovers in their first affair at home, two of which were from Hammond as she and Emma Claire Mills combined for six scores.

- After starting in an 0-2 hole, coach Clakeley's crew went on their largest uninterrupted scoring sequence of the season with a 4-0 flurry. Furthermore, each of those goals came from a different player (Hammond, Kaylie Rittmueller, Mickey Paredes, and freshman Emily Currie).

- EMU punched right back, however, scoring six times in the final 4:32 of the second frame to take a four-point lead into the locker room.

- Back-to-back connections by Hammond and Mills put the Blue Hose within two goals (9-7), although the Eagles would again deliver a furious counterstrike by notching the game's next seven scores.

- In addition to their six combined goals, Mills and Hammond would also sync up for nine draw control victories while newbie Madeleine Lowrance grabbed three more.

- Eight of Hammond's ten shot attempts were on-target, while Currie has now produced four strikes in the first three games of her collegiate career.


 
UP NEXT
 
- Presbyterian has never lost in seven tries against Delaware State, hoping to keep up that perfect track record on Sunday in the first time that DSU will visit Clinton since 2019.

- The last time that the Blue Hose faced the Hornets two years back, they held on to an 11-10 victory thanks to a pair of late goals by Hammond and Melissa Mucollari within the final five minutes.

- Delaware State has started the '25 campaign at 0-3, falling to La Salle, UMBC, and Radford by a combined margin of 41 points.