READING, Pa. – Eastern Women's Lacrosse dropped its season opener to host Albright by a final of 20-5. The Lions used a 15 goal first half to claim the victory.

"Looking forward to working together for small successes to earn the big successes," said Head Coach Kim Campbell. "We have a new team, very different dynamics than last season. Games are exciting, and the possibilities are endless. We were excited to play lacrosse against a good team."

Albright (1-0) jumped out to an early 7-0 lead within the first seven minutes of the game. On two different occasions, the Lions tallied goals less than 20 seconds apart. 

Stephanie Hogan finally got Eastern (0-1) on the board in the 23rd-minute sparking a three-goal run by the Eagles. Eastern tallied another goal 15 seconds later when Julie Haggan tallied an unassisted goal to make the score 7-2. Anna Charlebois capped off the run with an unassisted goal pulling Eastern within four, 7-3, with just over 17 minutes left to play before halftime. 

The Lions closed out the first half outscoring the Eagles eight to one, seven of those goals coming in a row. Charlebois tallied the final Eastern goal of the first half to make it 14-4 before Mariah Cullen stretched the Albright lead to 11, 15-4 heading into the locker rooms. 

"Albright is a skilled team that works hard the whole game," continued Campbell. "They capitalized early off of getting possession on the draw multiple times. And we were working to be a cohesive unit on defense. As the game progressed our defense improved and we were able to come up with the ball and make saves."
 
Hogan scored again just over a minute and a half into the second half to pull Eastern back within ten, 15-5. However, the Lions would close out the game scoring the final five goals to make the score final at 20-5. 

Overall Albright outshot the Eagles 41-11 putting 33 of those shots on goal. The Lions also held a significant advantage in draw controls, 18-6. 

Cortney Andes finished the game with 13 saves while Albright goalies Emily Huston, Shannon Bremer, and Hayley Joyce combined for four saves total.

Hogan and Charlebois each finished the game with two goals and two points apiece while Haggan finished with one goal and one point. 

"We continue to build on our strengths and to correct some areas of our game," concluded Campbell. "We ultimately want to score so we have to earn possessions and capitalize off of the opportunities we work hard to create."

Eastern takes on Neumann on February 27th in Orlando, Fla.