PHOTOS

WOOSTER, Ohio –  The No. 21 University of Chicago women's lacrosse team exploded out of the gate and never looked back in a commanding 23–7 win over The College of Wooster in their opening round of the NCAA Division III Tournament at John P. Papp Stadium.

The Maroons set the tone early, outscoring the Fighting Scots 11–3 in a dominant first quarter. Peyton McGuire and Lulu Hardy each tallied six goals to lead the offensive barrage, and Jane Chen dished out a game-high four assists. McGuire netted the game's first goal less than 30 seconds in and went on to score in every quarter, including a pair of unassisted tallies in the second half.

Hardy was just as deadly, scoring four of her six goals in the second and third quarters to keep the momentum firmly in UChicago's favor. Avery Song, Jill Hooey, Skylar Lienhardt, and others chipped in as the Maroons displayed impressive offensive depth. 10 different players found the back of the net for Chicago.

UChicago's aggressive, high-pressure defense limited Wooster to just one goal in each of the final three periods of action. Tough midfield and defender play helped hold the Fighting Scots to their lowest scoring output since early March. Rachel Keefe also had one of her top games of the season, saving 10 of the 17 shots on goal by Wooster.

Skylar Lienhardt led the defense with three ground ball pickups, and Jill Hooey and Evelina Swigart paced the team with three caused turnovers. Swigart and Wynne Boggan added a team-high 5 draw controls in the win.

The Maroons will advance to the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA Tournament, looking to build on one of their most complete performances of the season. The Maroons will await the winner of #2 Middlebury and #22 Ithaca on May 17 with the location of the Sweet 16 match to be determined on Sunday night.