WASHINGTON – Senior Isabel Terwindt scored two goals and an assist to lead the American University field hockey team to a 5-2 victory over Lafayette on Saturday afternoon at Jacobs Field.

With the win, the Eagles improved to 9-4 overall and 4-1 in the Patriot League. American also clinched a bid to the PL Tournament for the 15th time in as many seasons. Meanwhile, the Leopards dropped to 7-7 overall and 2-2 in the league.

American dominated the first half, outshooting Lafayette 10-0 and drawing five penalty corners. AU's first goal came on an early corner attempt, as Terwindt tipped in a pass from junior Natalie Konerth in the ninth minute of action.

Konerth added the second goal of the game midway through the first half on a direct corner, while senior Katie Lonsky capitalized on a pass from freshman Rafaela Rubas with under five minutes remaining in the first half.

Early in the second half, Lafayette got on the board, scoring on its first shot of the contest. However, AU's lead went back to three goals when Terwindt passed the ball to sophomore Sophia Crawshay in front of the cage for another score.

American's final goal of the game came with 24:03 remaining, with the Eagles taking advantage of another penalty corner. After a pass from Terwindt to Rubas, Rubas sent it back to Terwindt, who hit a hard shot to the back of the cage.

While Lafayette outshot American 7-4 over the remainder of the game, the Eagles were able to keep the Leopards off the board with the exception of a goal on a penalty stroke with 1:55 on the clock.

"It was a huge win against a really strong team, one of our traditional rivals," said American head coach Steve Jennings. "It was great to come out and get some points on the board early and put them under pressure. I thought our team played an outstanding game overall."

The Eagles are back in action tomorrow afternoon, when they host Kent State in a non-conference matchup at 1:00.

"For us, every game is important," said Jennings. "We're trying to keep momentum. We're trying to be a team that is refining our principles and our tactics as we keep going, because at the end of the day, when we get to the postseason, we want to be champions, we don't want to just be there."