No. 18 USC Lacrosse Extinguishes The Sun Devils In A Dominant Pac-12 Opener

Friday, March 17

Los Angeles, Calif.

3:00 PM

USC

6-2, 1-0Pac-12

Arizona State

1-5, 0-1Pac-12

Arizona State

USC

Photo by: John McGillen

No. 18 USC Lacrosse Extinguishes The Sun Devils In A Dominant Pac-12 Opener

March 17, 2023 | Women's Lacrosse

Box Score Highlights

The Trojans outscored Arizona State down the stretch 8-0, as they claimed the Pac-12 opener 17-6.

LOS ANGELES - The No. 18 USC Lacrosse squad dominated its first opportunity in Pac-12 play. Three players earned a hat trick in the 17-6 victory over Arizona State on Mar. 17 at McAlister Field.

KEY PLAYERS:

Three players posted hat tricks in the affair, as senior Ella Heaney, junior Shelby Tilton and junior Claudia Shevitz posted four goals apiece. Tilton tied her career-high for goals in a single game.
Redshirt sophomore Isabelle Vitale played a crucial role in the offense, as she tied her career-high with five assists and ended with six total points.
Graduate student Katie Ramsay led the defensive charge with three caused turnovers and three groundballs. Senior Olivia Dooley also helped on that front with three caused turnovers and two groundballs, while graduate transfer Emma Wightman had three caused turnovers.
Junior goalie Kait Devir had a huge second half, as she went from zero saves at half to eight total.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

The story of the first quarter was the defense and Heaney. Heaney posted three goals in one minute and fifty seconds at the end of the first quarter. The attacker's first goal came at 1:52, and her last goal happened at the buzzer with :02 left. On the defensive side, USC allowed just one shot on goal and surrendered one goal.
In the second, it was junior attacker Shelby Tilton's opportunity to showcase herself, as she posted two of the four goals in the quarter. Again, USC showcased a strong charge in the second quarter, entering the half up 9-4.
The tale of two halves seemed to loom at the start, as the Sun Devils approached the third with two straight goals (three consecutive) and closed the gap to just three goals (9-6).
USC put its foot down when ASU made it a three-goal difference. Shelby Tilton found her third and fourth goal of the evening at 9:00 and 3:31 in the third, and from there, the Trojans were off to the races. USC would score eight consecutive goals and held the Sun Devils to nothing for the final 24 minutes.

UP NEXT:

The Trojans will take the rest of the weekend off, as they prepare for doubleheader action next week against Colorado and Oregon. USC takes on the Buffalo at 3 p.m. Friday (Mar. 24) and the Ducks at noon Sunday (Mar. 26), with both games happening at McAlister Field in Los Angeles.

For more information on the USC women's lacrosse team, a complete schedule, and results, please visit USCTrojans.com. Fans of the Women of Troy can follow the team on Instagram and on Twitter @USCTrojansLax.

GAME NOTES:

Ella Heaney moved into the top ten for goals all-time for the Trojans with her second goal in the first. Heaney now has 79 career goals.
USC is now 11-0 all-time in conference openers.
The Trojans are 36-8 in conference home games (18-5 Pac-12; 18-3 MPSF). USC is 66-18 at home all-time and 61-15 at McAlister Field.
USC is 32-10 in Pac-12 games.
The Trojans are 102-17 all-time versus unranked opponents.
USC is now 9-2 all-time versus Arizona State.
The Trojans' 11-goal victory over the Sun Devils is their third-largest victory in series history and USC's largest victory versus ASU since it won 19-7 on April 26, 2018.