DAVIS, Calif. – The No. 7 Florida lacrosse team (9-2, 1-0 Big 12) defeated UC Davis (3-7, 1-1) 16-10 on Friday night in their conference opener, for their sixth consecutive win.
The Gators went up 4-0 to start the game and never looked back, leading by as many as eight goals. Seven different players scored a goal, led by Clark Hamilton and Gianna Monaco who recorded four goals apiece. Jordan Basso and Frannie Hahn recorded two goals and two assists each, along with two goals from Kaitlyn Davies. Jenny Markey and Gabbi Koury contributed one score each.
UF won the draw control battle by an 18-12 margin, as Cali Bishop tied a career best eight draw controls, while Markey contributed with five. Florida had 18 ground balls, compared to 14 from UC Davis, as Ashley Dyer tied a career best four ground balls.
Georgia Hoey recorded six saves on the evening, improving to 5-2 in net on the season.
How It Happened
First Quarter
- Hamilton opened up the scoring on a strong dodge to her right where she found the back of the net to put the Gators up 1-0 with 12:53 to play.
- Monaco scored back-to-back goals, first off an eight-meter opportunity, then off a dodge around the crease to put UF up 3-0, before Basso found Frannie Hahn on the left side where she took the lane given and scored to make it 4-0 with 4:37 remaining.
- The Aggies got two goals back to make it 4-2, before Hamilton scored off the dish from Basso with 19 seconds to go to make it 5-2 after one.
Second Quarter.
- Hamilton scored her third goal of the game off a loose ball push shot, that she passed into the net hockey style, to give UF a 6-2 advantage with 13:15 to play.
- UC Davis scored at the 10:42 point, which was responded by Davies off a pass from Frannie Hahn to push the lead back to 7-3 with 8:17 remaining.
- After an Aggies goal with 3:57 to play, the Gators went on a 3-0 run to end the half. Hamilton scored first on a rip with 3:13 to play, before Basso connected on a goal assisted by Frannie Hahn with 31 seconds remaining. Markey concluded the half with a flashy back-hand goal to give UF a 10-4 advantage at the break.
Third Quarter
- UC Davis struck first, before Monaco and Koury scored back-to-back goals in a 36 second span, to give Florida a 12-5 lead with 10:51 to go.
- The Aggies got one back, before UF scored two in a row, featured by scores from Basso and Monaco to put UF up 14-6 with 6:25 remaining, as that would be the rest of the scoring for the quarter.
Fourth Quarter
- UC Davis connected with two goals, to cut the lead to six, but Frannie Hahn answered off an assist from Hamilton to give Florida a 15-8 lead at the 10:26 mark.
- The Aggies scored two more, getting the lead down to 15-10, until Davies iced the game with 58 seconds left to seal a 16-10 victory.
Key Notes
- UF improves to 3-0 all-time against UC Davis and 84-7 all-time in conference games
- Monaco and Hamilton both recorded their seventh hat-tricks of the season
- It was the fifth game this season that five or more different players recorded two or more goals in a game
- Florida improves to 5-0 when they win the draw control battle
- The Gators mounted a season high 39 shots
- UF is 6-0 on the road this season and own a 14-game road winning streak
- Davies has totaled seven consecutive multi-goal games
Active Streaks
Next Up
The No. 7 Gators will be back in action on Saturday, April 5 at home against San Diego State at 10 a.m.
