Brady's Roadhouse

The Waynesburg University Women’s Lacrosse team finally returned for the first time in over a year on March 13. The long break came after the 2020 season was cancelled after just two games, and saw the team win its first game in three years, snapping a 45-game losing streak. 

The Yellow Jackets opened the 2020-2021 season on the road at Washington and Jefferson College. 

Waynesburg coach Gennaro Bonaventura talked about the game and his young team.

“It was a tough first test for us,” Bonaventura said. “We lost a lot of seniors last year so we’re a pretty new team, and we have to get adjusted better. I thought our legs looked good and we were in good shape.”

The Presidents wasted no time finding the back of the net when sophomore attacker Amanda Effland opened the scoring less than one minute into the game. 

Unfortunately for Waynesburg the relentless Washington and Jefferson offensive pressure wouldn’t cease. The Presidents racked up 15 first period goals. 

The Yellow Jackets were able to score twice in the first period with sophomore midfielder Hannah Rosenburger scoring both. The first came almost halfway through the first period on an assist from junior Lily Portman making the score 10-1. Rosenberger’s second goal came just over five minutes later on a free position shot, making it 12-2. 

Portman is a team captain along with seniors Riley Yoder and Melissa Yoder for the 2021 season. This year’s young team and lack of experience is an area to focus on for Portman.

“We were definitely rusty and a lot of the girls haven’t played in a collegiate game before,” Portman said. “The biggest thing is getting team chemistry and understanding what moves the other players make, what our strengths are, what our weaknesses are.” 

The Presidents stood tall with a 15-2 lead at halftime, and would close out the game scoring eight more times in the second period making it a 23-2 final score. 

Washington and Jefferson had many stand out performances including nine different players scoring a goal. Freshman attacker Sadie Firman led the Presidents with five goals. Effland would end the game with three goals and four assists. Freshman midfielder Sofia Jenkins racked up four goals and four assists, while sophomore midfielder Sarah Labovitz tallied three goals and five assists. 

Waynesburg returns to action March 21 on the road against Chatham University at 2:05 p.m.