BALTIMORE – It was the final play of the game that gave the American University lacrosse team (1-1) the 15-14 win over UMBC (2-1). It was Annabelle Jackson with a free position goal in the final second of the contest that had the Eagles soaring to their first win of the season and their first win over the Retrievers in over 20 years.

BY THE NUMBERS

• Freshmen power combo Kellie Linehan and Jackson led for the Eagles with four goals on seven shots apiece. All four of Jackson's shots on goal ended up as goals. Linehan also had two assists.
• Junior transfer, defender Hannah Spease had a hat trick of her own from five shots on goal. She also picked up two ground balls and an assist. Both Spease and fellow classmate Lizzie De Guzman led the way for American with four draw controls each.
• Maddy Spratt had two goals and an assist, and Reagan Murdoch and Emma Hare joined in with a goal each.
• Keeper Mary Alice Collins had 11 saves on the afternoon against the 25 shots the Retrievers put on goal.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The game started with the draw control going to UMBC and then the Eagles' keeper Collins came away with a big save. After Collins' stop, American got on themselves on the board first thanks to a goal from Spease just over 30 seconds into the game.
• Linehan joined in on the action at 9:42 in the first quarter when she got herself on the board, doubling the American lead to 2-0 early on.
• The Retrievers cut into their deficit though, answering with 6:32 left in the quarter with a goal of their own. With 2:53 remaining in the first frame, UMBC put the two teams level at 2-all and with just 26 seconds remaining in the opening frame, UMBC took the 3-2 lead on a person-up goal.  
• The opening part of the second quarter belonged to the Retrievers, where less than four minutes in, they'd taken four goals from American to lead 7-2 with 11-43 left before the halftime break. The first of the three was another person-up.
• American was down but not out though when they came back with two goals of their own, down 4-7, thanks to a second from Linehan on a free position goal and then Jackson with the fourth.
• UMBC grabbed another, up 4-9 with 6:03 remaining before the half, but again, the Eagles fought back, cutting into the lead with another goal, this one from Hare, playing up a player.
• The lead shifted again towards the Retrievers, but when they got another goal to lead 9-5.
• Not backing down, American scored two more, both on free position shots, thanks to efforts from Murdoch and a second knocked into the goal from Spease with 3:26 before the half and the Eagles down just two, 7-9. That was the score line as the teams headed into the break.
• Coming out of the break, the Retrievers struck twice in the first five minutes of the third frame, but American answered both of those. Jackson got a player-up goal for her second goal of the game, assisted by Spease, before Spease herself got a goal, her third of the contest. The Eagles trailed by two again, down 9-11 with 5:57 left in the period.
• Jackson, again, was on target for American, grabbing a goal to put the Eagles down just one, 10-11. A goal from Spratt with 19 seconds left in the third put the two teams knotted at 11-all.
• It was Spratt, four minutes into the final frame that gave American the lead for the first time since the opening frame, before Linehan scored a third to join Spease and Jackson with a hat trick of her own to put the Eagles up 13-11.
• Two quick goals a minute apart from UMBC had the contest all tied up again, this time at 13-all.
• American got the go-ahead goal from Linehan with her fourth of the game, but UMBC again equalized so that it was 14-all with 3:07 remaining.
• The Eagles had the final two shots in open play before UMBC fouled Jackson. With her free position shot, she scored to give the Eagles their 15-14 victory, their first of the 2023 season, leveling them at 1-1 for the season and giving them their first win over the Retrievers in over 20 years.

UP NEXT

• The Eagles are coming home for a three-game homestead in Jacobs Complex starting Friday, Feb. 24 against Howard and then they'll take on George Washington on Wednesday March 1 and Mercer on Saturday, March 4.

KEEP UP WITH US

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