CLINTON, S.C. – Braving strong winds and pelting precipitation for the majority of Monday afternoon's non-conference matchup against FDU, the Presbyterian College lacrosse team found the perfect mix of steady offense and stifling defense in a 15-5 rout over the Knights.

The third home victory for the Blue Hose this year – becoming the third school in the Big South to hit that number – PC led from wire to wire against another northeastern visitor and did not allow FDU to score a single goal in either the 2^nd or 4^th periods.

Willow Hammond and Emily Currie came into Monday's affair tied with each other for the highest goal count on the roster, and they will stay that way after both putting up four scores. It's the fourth time in the last five meetings that Presby has made it to double digits.

Presbyterian hopes to ride this momentum into their sixth consecutive home match in only two days, welcoming Merrimack to Bailey Memorial Stadium for a 5:00 start on the 12^th.


 
NOTABLES
 
- Hammond's first goal of the day (submitted less than two minutes into the match) was the 100^th of her illustrious career in the blue and garnet.

- She joins former teammate Abby Edmisten (2020-24) and Catherine Ellis (2011-14) as the only three players in school history to reach 100 goals, with her and Currie now tied for the fourth-most scores in the league through seven games.

- Currie and Hammond also mirrored each other with three draws apiece, helping the Scotsmen grab a 29-20 discrepancy in total shot attempts.

- Junior keeper Kayleigh Aitken played the first three quarters as the deficit got out of hand in Presby's favor, saving four after denying a career-high 11 shots on Friday against Detroit Mercy. Naomi Lauderbaugh saw the field in the last frame and stopped three tries herself.

- Head coach Eric Clakeley's defense kept the Knights in check all afternoon, holding FDU scoreless for over 25 minutes straight at one point and thwarting any hope of a comeback from the New Jersey visitors.

- Nearly one week after a career-best five goals in an offensive explosion against Mercyhurst, senior midfielder Kenzie Partsch did most of her damage on the other end of the field, causing three turnovers and securing four ground balls.

- The sophomore tandem of Kaylie Rittmueller and Emma Claire Mills was effective in aiding PC to the blowout, each logging a couple of successful strikes as the Knights had no answer to Presbyterian's depth.


 
HOW IT HAPPENED
 
- After a 4-2 start to the contest nearly 10 minutes in, coach Clakeley's bunch scored seven unanswered goals over the next quarter-and-a-half to blow the bout wide open and take a nine-point lead.

- Mills gave her squad an 8-2 halftime edge by scoring with 50 seconds on the clock, as the Blue Hose kept pushing the deficit further until it hit mercy-rule territory with 5:17 remaining in the 4^th.

- FDU was denied any more goals after squeezing out their last with just a second to go in quarter number three, aiding PC to their second win of the year by at least 10 points.

- Monday was the inaugural meeting between the two schools who are separated by nearly 800 miles, with the Blue Hose forcing 19 Knight turnovers and keeping FDU busy with 24 shots-on-goal.


 
UP NEXT
 
- From one first-time encounter to another in less than 48 hours, Presbyterian hosts Merrimack on Wednesday with the Warriors still in search of their first win of 2025. They've been outscored 72-45 through five games and most recently took a 14-10 setback versus New Hampshire.

- ESPN+ will have live coverage of the event, the final game of PC's six-match homestand that started back on February 25.