The Lindenwood women's lacrosse team defeated the Fort Lewis Skyhawks 16-8 during the RMAC championship tournament semi-final game from Hunter Stadium in St. Charles, Mo. 
 
The Lady Lions wasted little time gaining the early edge in the game, scoring 59 seconds into play. Allison Hurley fed Sophie Buelow for the first goal of the game, putting Lindenwood in front 1-0. Hurley and Buelow would connect for the second Lady Lion goal 47 seconds later, as Buelow notched her second-consecutive goal. Lindenwood would tally the next five goals, building a 7-0 advantage with 20:21 remaining in the first half. During the Lady Lion run, Rachel Benzing scored twice, while Kara Wendell, Sarah Cromer, and Hurley each found the back of the net once.
 
Fort Lewis would cut into the Lindenwood lead, scoring the next two goals of the game, bringing the score to 7-2. The Lady Lions responded by outscoring the Skyhawks 2-1 over the final 11:25 of the first half, and headed into halftime with a 9-3 lead. Cassie Stuklen and Morgan Judd recorded the final two Lindenwood goals.
 
The Skyhawks broke through with the first goal of the second half, cutting the Lady Lion lead to 9-4. The Lady Lions poured in five of the next six goals over a 16:01 span, establishing a commanding 14-5 lead. Amanda Schimpke started the Lindenwood run, while Hannah Doughty, Hurley, and Sarah Goetz all registered Lady Lion goals.
 
Fort Lewis would add the next three goals, trimming the Lindenwood lead to 14-8. However, Lindenwood's Cassie Stucklen scored twice in the final 28 seconds, bringing the score to its final mark of 16-8. In goal for the Lady Lions, Rachel Ortell turned in a career-high 14 saves to earn her ninth victory of the season.
 
For the game, the Lady Lions held the edge in shots (29-26) and ground balls (18-12), while the Skyhawks had the advantage in draw controls (16-9). Lindenwood was 2-5 on its free-position shots, and 19-26 on its defensive-zone clear attempts.
 
Lindenwood will return to action tomorrow afternoon at 1:00 p.m. for the RMAC tournament championship game versus Regis University. The game will be played at Hunter Stadium.