WASHINGTON - The offense exploded yet again for American University lacrosse, led by a career-high tying seven goals from Emma Vinall in an 18-12 win over Long Island that gives the Eagles the best start in program history at 5-0.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Vinall, who has 30 goals overall, has not scored fewer than five in a game this season. She scored three of AU's first five goals and was a constant threat throughout the game.
• The Eagles uncharacteristically gave up a few early goals, and LIU had a 3-0 lead five minutes in.
• Kendall Goldblum got AU on the board in the sixth minute, with her goal starting a 6-0 run in which she and Vinall each completed hat tricks with three goals apiece.
• The final nine minutes of the first half saw a total of seven goals with four from AU and three by the Sharks. The Eagles' lead at halftime was 10-6, and their lead was at least three for the rest of the game.
• The Sharks used another 3-0 run to make it 12-9 AU just six minutes into the second half, but the duo of Vinall and Casey Harkins teamed up for one of three goals in the game to stop the run and put AU back in control.
• Harkins, already among the top three in NCAA Division I in assists, finished with six assists while also scoring a goal.
• Goldblum added a game-high nine draw controls to five total goals, and Hali Sibilia finished with three goals for AU.
• On defense, Cate Golden led the Eagles with three caused turnovers and five ground balls.
• Emma Curtis made five saves in goal, with Delaney Oliviera coming in and making four saves in the final 17:33.

QUOTABLE

• "Huge start for us, obviously, first time in program history being 5-0. But that's just a stepping stone for us. We're hoping to be able to go 6-0, 7-0, 8-0 but right now we're taking one game at a time. For us it's just good to see the girls having fun and changing the culture. They've worked their butts off the past 3-4 months and we're seeing the pieces come together. Today it was about composure. After the five minutes we pulled the girls over, told them to pick it up and refocus. Seeing the changes they made right then was really big and was a big step for us." - Alix Lopez, assistant coach

UP NEXT

• The Eagles will have a week before their next contest, a 4 p.m. game at Wofford on Saturday, March 7.

FOLLOW ALONG

• For the latest on American University Lacrosse, stay tuned to AUEagles.com and follow the team on Twitter (@AU_Lacrosse) and Instagram (@au_wlax).