EASTON, Pa. – Junior Kate Avitabile tallied eight points on one goal and seven assists, as the Holy Cross women's lacrosse team defeated Lafayette 18-7 at Fisher Stadium. The Crusaders improve to 3-4 on the season and 1-0 in the Patriot League with the victory, while the Leopards fall to 4-2 overall and 0-1 in the conference.

HOW IT HAPPENED:
• Lafayette opened the game by jumping out to an early 3-1 lead, and was still up 4-3 early in the second quarter. 
• Holy Cross then closed out the first half with a 5-2 run to claim an 8-6 advantage at the break.
• The Crusaders would dominate play in the second half, outscoring Lafayette 6-0 in the third quarter and 4-1 in the fourth quarter to pull away for a 11-goal victory.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
• Sophomore Hadley Cepiel scored a team-high four goals, while freshman Janie Baringer added a career-best three goals.
• Senior Mackenzie Creagh made a season-high 11 saves while allowing just six goals in 56:08 of action.
• Senior Racheli Levy-Smith totaled 15 draw controls, two caused turnovers and two ground balls.
• The Leopards were led by Sadie Martiesian and Olivia Hoverwith two goals each.

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE:
• Avitabile's seven assists broke the school single-game record.
• Levy Smith's 15 draw controls were the fifth-highest single-game total in program history.
• Holy Cross won its Patriot League opener for the third straight year, and the sixth time in the last eight seasons.

UP NEXT:
• The Crusaders will return to action on Saturday, March 14, when they travel to Lehigh for a 12 p.m. game.

FOLLOW THE CRUSADERS:
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