Lawrence Tech Crown NAIA Women's Lacrosse National Champion
SOUTHFIELD, Mich. - (NAIA Release) - Lawrence Tech took care of unfinished business by winning the 2023 NAIA Women's Lacrosse National Championship at Blue Devil Stadium after finishing as runner-ups last year. The second-seeded Blue Devils defeated fifth-seeded SCAD Savannah (Ga.) 16-15 in overtime for their first national crown.
SCAD scored on its first possession when Annise Berkeley snuck one between the pipes after winning the opening draw for the first score of the game and the Bees added two more goals for a 3-0 lead with just over 11 minutes left in the quarter. LTU cut into the lead with its first goal by Bella Burke only to see SCAD return the lead to three. Each team added a late goal and the quarter ended with SCAD in front 5-2.
The second quarter was a mirror image of the first, this time with Burke winning the opening draw for LTU and bouncing a shot into the cage. The Blue Devils added two goals as Sydney Robinson tallied a goal and an assist to even the score 5-5 midway through the quarter. The Blue Devils took the lead with four more unanswered goals over the next three minutes. The Bees hung around and closed out the half with a 3-1 run to cut Lawrence Tech's lead to 10-8 at the half.
The teams traded goals in the opening minutes of the third quarter until SCAD scored at the 7:53 mark and then won the ensuing draw control to set up another score to knot the score at 11. After scores by both teams, Clarke Haas converted a free position goal to put the Bees back in the lead at 13-12. Alaina Smith pulled LTU even with a goal at the 47-second mark.
The final quarter looked to belong to the Bees as Haas scored twice for SCAD in the first six minutes. After two keys saves by Anabelle Acluche, LTU converted a turnover into a goal to cut the lead to one at 15-14. A minute later, Gabi Mitchell found Hannah Huebner to tie the game with 3:31 remaining. Lorna Fowles of SCAD made two saves in the closing minutes to force overtime.
The Bees won the opening draw control in overtime, however, Acluche made a stick save to give Lawrence Tech the possession. On the Blue Devils first offensive possession of the extra period, Mitchell found Smythe cutting in front of the cage for the man-up game-winning goal as Lawrence Tech captured the 16-15 win.
Bella Burke led the way for Lawrence Tech with four goals, 14 draw controls, three ground balls, and a pair of caused turnovers. Smythe finished with five goals, while Hannah Huebner notched four goals. Sydney Robinson dished out six assists to go along with seven draw controls. Anabelle Acluche made 11 saves in the win as LTU posted a 17-1 overall record for the season.
Clarke Haas led the way for SCAD with an NAIA Tournament record of nine goals in the game, while Aly De Caro finished with three goals, two assists and three ground balls. De Caro finished the tournament with an NAIA record of 21 points. Lorne Fowles made 17 saves between the pipes, which tied the NAIA record for saves in a tournament game. Annise Berkeley finished with two points and scooped five draw controls in the game as SCAD ended the season at 12-6.
LTU placed three on the All-Tournament Team with Bella Burke earning MVP honors. Smythe and Vander Zwaag joined her on the team.
2023 NAIA All-Tournament Team Members
Alaina Smythe, Lawrence Tech
Bella Burke, Lawrence Tech
Jocelyn Vander Zwaag, Lawrence Tech
Bella Ricchiazzi, Cumberlands (Ky.)
Clarke Haas, SCAD Savannah (Ga.)
Kaylen Moore, Benedictine (Kan.)
Taila Myers, Keiser (Fla.)
Aly De Caro, SCAD Savannah (Ga.)
Caroline Karr, Missouri Baptist
Syd McHale, Reinhardt (Ga.)
Leanne Windon, Life (Ga.)
Lorna Fowles, SCAD Savannah (Ga.)
Tournament MVP – Bella Burke, Lawrence Tech