Carthage 22, Illinois Wesleyan 2
BLOOMINGTON - The Carthage women's lacrosse team returned to action on Saturday afternoon in Bloomington, Illinois, to take on the Illinois Wesleyan Titans for a conference matchup. The Firebirds delivered a dominant offensive showing, defeating the Titans 22-2 behind a balanced scoring attack that saw multiple Firebirds find the back of the net.


FIRST PERIOD

• Carthage set the tone early with an explosive eight-goal opening quarter.
• Goals were scored by Kyleigh Higgins (2), Auggie Claridge, and Shannon Heitschmidt, along with additional early strikes that built momentum throughout the period. 

SECOND PERIOD

• The Firebirds added five more goals in the second to extend their advantage.
• Piper LeFevre (2), Rosie Nolan, Hannah Kim, and Claridge all found the net. 
• Carthage continued to capitalize on scoring opportunities, taking a 13-1 lead into halftime.

THIRD PERIOD

• Carthage continued its offensive surge with six goals in the third period.
• Goals came from Ari Solomon, Heitschmidt, Hannah Kim, Kelsey O'Brien, Claridge, and Nolan. 
• The Firebirds maintained control and kept applying pressure, pushing the lead even further.

FOURTH PERIOD

• In the final period, Carthage closed out the game with three more goals.
• Kaitlyn Goff, Nolan, and O'Brien each scored to cap off the 22-goal performance.

• O'Brien led all scorers with four goals and one assist,
• Heitschmidt recorded three goals.
• Claridge added three goals and five assists.
• In goal, Xochitl Delvale-Vera anchored the defense in the net, recording one save.
• Carthage recorded 34 total shots and 25 shots on goal.

"Great conference win today," said head coach Maddie Berni. "Offense really played as a unit and saw a lot of different looks. Our defense did a great job holding them to 2 goals. Really proud of this team!"


The Firebirds will return to action Wednesday, April 22, at 6 p.m. in Elmhurst, Illinois, to take on the Elmhurst Bluejays. For more information, visit our athletics.carthage.edu.