AURORA, NY – The Alfred University women's lacrosse team opened their spring season in high spirits, as they came away with a 19-3 win over Wells College on Wednesday evening.

The 19 goals from the Saxons (1-0) marked their highest-scoring effort since the 2017 season in which they defeated D'Youville College, 24-14. The defense for AU limited Wells (0-1) to just eight shots in their victory.

Amelia Booth (Staatsburg, NY/FDR) enjoyed her debut with the Saxons, breaking the program record with 20 draw controls while scoring seven times across a team-high 16 shots. The shot total for Booth also tied the program record that was originally set during the 2008 season. Brenna Turner (Bentonville, AR/Bentonville) scored a team-high eight goals along with two assists. Hailey Stroh (Houghton, NY/Homeschool) ended with three goals across five shots in her debut with Alfred, as she also forced a team-high five caused turnovers. Alyssa Piechota (Webster, NY/Webster Thomas) and Fantasy Jimerson-Kenjockety (Seneca Nation, N/Lake Shore Senior) both appeared in goal, recording two saves apiece.

"It's inspiring to see our team's hard work pay off," Head Coach Johanna McCormick said. "They truly work as a team and fought hard for every point, assist, draw control, ground ball and save tonight. We are going to carry the same energy into the rest of the season."

An assist from Booth to Turner opened scoring for the Saxons in the early moments of the first quarter. AU capitalized on their lead after a pass from Madeline Shaw (Williamsville, NY/Sacred Heart Academy) to Turner found its way to the back of the net. Stroh found an opening for her first collegiate goal to give the Saxons a 3-0 lead. Another assist from Booth to Turner had AU leading 4-0 early. Stroh scored once more before Booth piled on three consecutive goals, as Alfred University led 8-0 with 4:32 to play in the first quarter. Wells scored twice to cut their deficit before Booth scored for a fourth time, as the Saxons held a 9-2 lead entering the second quarter.

Alfred carried their momentum over into the second quarter, as an assist from Ceci Sherwood (Indiana, PA/Indiana) to Turner extended the lead. Goals from Booth, Shaw, Stroh and Turner had the Saxons leading 15-2 at the break. Wells scored once more in the second half, but two goals apiece for Booth and Turner, along with a stellar defensive performance for AU, put the game out of reach.

"We are looking forward to our Spring Break trip to Hilton Head," McCormick said. "We are going to capitalize on the good weather and continue to practice hard as a team."

Alfred University will next travel to Hilton Head, South Carolina to play SUNY Potsdam on Monday at 9:00 AM.