SHIPPENSBURG, Pa. – Freshman Jena MacDonald totaled six points for the second straight game, senior Allison Fugate recorded her fifth career hat trick and junior defender Valerie Hertz tallied six caused turnovers as the Shippensburg University lacrosse team staved off visiting Jefferson, 11-9, on a downright polar Wednesday afternoon at Robb Sports Complex.
 
Shippensburg (3-1) never trailed against Jefferson (0-3) but never led by more than three goals, as the two teams battled both each other and the frigid conditions during a game in which winds often gusted and flurries filled the air on occasion – resulting in numerous difficult passes and clears.
 
MacDonald scored a career-high four goals – two in each half – and added a pair of assists. Her tally with 2:02 remaining, off an assist from Fugate, produced the final two-goal margin, as SU gained possession in the final 90 seconds and played possession down the stretch.
 
Fugate tied a career high with five points for the third time in her career – adding two assists in addition to her hat trick. She opened the scoring 4:08 into the contest with a free-position tally and also assisted on another MacDonald goal in the first half.
 
Hertz was sensational along the back lines, tallying five groundballs in addition to her six caused turnovers. The Raiders had 18 caused turnovers on the day, including two each for MacDonald and junior Madi Newman.
 
Freshman KiKi Brasher had another strong game in goal, making eight saves en route to the victory. Brasher had three groundballs, a caused turnover, and made four huge stops on Jefferson free-position attempts.
 
Other goal scorers on the day included Newman, junior Morgan Stone, freshman Alana Cardaci and freshman Kami Holt. Newman finished with four of SU's 10 draw controls, while Stone added four groundballs and a pair of draw controls.
 
Fugate and senior Makenzie Magnotta each had four groundballs, while freshman Maddy Siejk added three groundballs and also assisted on a pair of goals. Junior Kyra Shank also had an assist.
 
The Rams got eight of their nine goals from two players – five by Sarah von Lange and three from Camryn Sullivan. Goalkeeper Victoria Raimondi made her first appearance of the season and recorded 10 saves.
 
Shippensburg opens conference play at 1 p.m. Saturday against Gannon from Robb Sports Complex.