Dukes Hang On For Win Over #5 Florida

Saturday, March 1

Charlotte, N.C.

11 a.m.

James Madison University

4-1

Florida

3-2

James Madison

Florida

3/1/2025 2:41:00 PM | Lacrosse

Box Score

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – #18 James Madison lacrosse led by as many as eight goals, and survived a late rally to take the 17-16 win over #5 Florida on Saturday afternoon at American Legion Memorial Stadium at the Crown Lacrosse Classic.

Maddie Epke led JMU (4-1) with four goals on five shots, and dished out two assists for her third hat trick of the season, to go along with a season-high 18 draw controls. Olivia Matthews recorded the first hat trick of her career in a span of 3:46 in the third period, while Savannah Derey, Lauren Savage, Chloe Bleckley and Olivia Mattis each netted two scores for the Dukes.

Adanya Moyer started in the cage and earned the win for the Dukes, making a career-high 16 saves on 36 shots faced. She also held Florida to 4-of-9 (.444) on free-position attempts. Alongside Moyer defensively, Ava Bleckley picked up a season-high four ground balls, and caused three of the Gators' eight turnovers. While Florida led in shots (36-30) and ground balls (20-16), JMU won the draw control battle 23-11, including 9-2 in the third quarter.

Florida (3-2) was paced by Frannie Hahn with seven goals, three assists and two ground balls. Clark Hamilton pitched in five scores while Kaitlyn Davies provided a pair of goals and an assist. The Gators played three goalies in the contest, with Ellyse Finnelle making six saves but allowing 11 goals between the second and third quarters.

How it Happened
First Quarter – James Madison 4, Florida 4

Florida scored on the opening possession for the early lead, but JMU answered with a 4-0 run from four Dukes to take a 4-1 lead at the 9:06 mark.
Moyer made four saves in the period, but Florida responded with a 3-0 run to tie things up at the end of the opening frame.

Second Quarter – James Madison 10, Florida 6

Florida scored first again to open the second, but an eight-meter score from Epke sparked a 5-0 run for the Dukes to make it 9-5 JMU with 2:32 left before the half.
Epke would net two more goals to close the half, with the Gators getting one more in off a rebounded saved shot. Moyer made five of her sixteen saves in the period.

Third Quarter – James Madison 16, Florida 10

Matthews opened the third with a hat trick, scoring all three unassisted in the span of 3:46 as JMU exploded out of the gate to make it 13-6.
Florida responded with a goal on the free position but saw JMU answer with scores from Epke and Derey to extend the Dukes' lead to 15-7 at the midway point of the period.
Florida scored three of the final four goals in the quarter and trailed 16-10 at the end of three.

Fourth Quarter – James Madison 17, Florida 16

Savage netted her second goal to begin the final frame as JMU continued to excel on the draws.
While the Dukes kept winning the battle in the draw circle, Florida pressured and took advantage of six JMU turnovers and began climbing back, making it a 17-16 game with 4:25 to play.
Moyer made the save of the contest with 2:48 left, stopping a shot from Gianna Monaco on the free-position and JMU was able to hold Florida without the equalizer as time expired.

Game Notes

JMU improved to 3-4 against Florida all-time, notching its first win against the Gators since 2023. The Dukes improved to 1-1 against opponents in the IWLCA Top 25 and 3-0 when leading after the third quarter.
The hat trick for Matthews marked the first of her career. She is the fourth Duke to record a hat trick this season.
Epke recorded her second straight game with 15 or more draw controls and has gotten ten or more draws in three of five outings this season.
JMU extends its win streak to four games, after beginning the season 0-1.

Up Next
JMU returns to Sentara Park on Saturday, March 8 for a matchup with #9 Maryland. The opening draw is slated for noon and will stream on ESPN+.