Wingate, N.C.----Wingate University senior attack Brittany Andrews (Bel Air, Md.) led all scorers with five goals to boost the Bulldogs to a dominant 20-9 triumph over Pfeiffer University in NCAA Division II women's lacrosse action from Graham Gill Field at the Irwin Belk Track Complex Wednesday evening. Eight different WU student-athletes found the back of the net for the hosts in the contest as Wingate reached the 20-goal mark for only the fifth time in the program's four seasons.
 
The 'Dogs overcame an early 3-0 deficit with 26:28 in the first half, improving to 2-1 overall. Pfeiffer falls to 3-1 overall. The Bulldogs are back in action this Saturday when they travel to Belmont Abbey for a 1 p.m. non-conference encounter. Pfeiffer returns home this Sunday when they host Huntingdon (Ala.) College for a 12 noon start.
 
"We came out a little flat to start the game, but picked up our intensity as the game progressed," Wingate head women's lacrosse coach Caline McHenry Olmsted says. "Overall, I am proud of our team's effort today on both sides of the ball."
 
WU senior midfielder Paulena Dempsey (Jarrettsville, Md.), freshman attack Kendall Wells (Elkridge, Md.) and redshirt junior attack Shannon O'Neal (Severna Park, Md.) tallied three goals each for the host Bulldogs. Freshman midfielder Casey Roux (Rochester, N.Y.) and sophomore midfielder Emily Ketron (Mason, Ohio) both finished with two tallies.
 
Freshman attack Joanna King (Lancaster, Pa.) netted her first career score, while senior midfielder Laura Swanson (Plantation, Fla.) found the back of the net for the first time in her final season with the Bulldogs. Dempsey and King also tallied three assists each in the game.
 
For Pfeiffer, sophomore attack/midfielder Ally Unkenholz (Ellicott City, Md.) and junior defender Molly O'Friel (Chesapeake Beach, Md.) totaled three goals each to lead the Falcon scoring efforts. Freshman attack/midfielder Meagan Bourque (Seabrook, Texas) had two tallies, while junior defender Kylie Lode (Centerville, Md.) had one score.
 
Pfeiffer stormed out of the gates early in the contest with three unanswered goals to jump out to the early 3-0 advantage; however, Wingate answered quickly with three consecutive tallies of its own to knot the score up at 3-3 with 20:50 left in the first half.
 
The Falcons netted the go-ahead with 19:07 on the clock before the WU offense exploded with eight straight tallies to take a commanding 11-4 advantage with 20 seconds remaining in the half. Wells scored to the game-tying goal to make it 4-4, while Roux netted the game-winning tally to give the hosts a 5-4 advantage at the 9:53 mark. The Bulldogs maintained the 11-4 lead at the halftime intermission.
 
With 10 seconds elapsed in the second half, Andrews netted her third goal of the contest to extend the WU scoring run out to nine straight tallies to make it a 12-4 lead. A goal from Lode ended the Bulldog streak and made it a 14-5 contest at the 28:12 mark. Andrews is now second on the WU scoring list with seven total goals in her senior campaign.
 
It was a back-and-forth scoring affair in the second half of play with the Falcons trimming the deficit down to 15-8 on a tally from Unkenholz with 19:29 to go. Wingate responded with three more consecutive goals to grab its first double-digit lead of game at 18-8 with 18:34 to play.
 
Dempsey netted her team-leading ninth and tenth goals of the season in the scoring run. Pfeiffer scored to make it 18-9 with 13:40 on the clock, but the Bulldogs tallied two more scores to reach 20 goals for the first time since defeating Newberry 21-10 last season on Apr. 9, 2016. Wingate held on for the 11-goal victory.
 
Wingate sophomore goalkeeper Arion Pierre (Haymarket, Va.) posted two saves and got the win, improving her record to 2-1. She played 36:06 in the contest, while WU junior goalkeeper Nicole Hinkle (Fallston, Md.) played the remaining 23:54 and tallied six saves.
 
Pfeiffer junior goalie Emily James (Marietta, Ga.) totaled 12 saves and took the loss, falling to 3-1. She played for a total of 51 minutes and sophomore goalie Sam Hanlon (Summerfield, N.C.) played for nine minutes while collecting one save.
 
Wingate outshot Pfeiffer 38-19, while maintaining the 19-12 in draw controls. The Bulldogs converted 18 ground balls off 17 Falcon turnovers. The 'Dogs tallied three goals on eight free-position shots, while Pfeiffer managed two scores on six free-position opportunities.
 
(Wingate University athletic media relations/sports network student assistant Jackson Kaplan contributed this article. A sophomore from Raleigh, Kaplan is a Communication Studies major at Wingate.)