HUNTINGDON, Pa.- The Juniata women's lacrosse team dropped their home season opener to Moravian on Senior Day, 22-12, Saturday afternoon.
Talia Bertrando (Lititz, Pa. / Warwick) scored the first goal on a free position shot 45 seconds into the contest. The Greyhounds responded a little over two minutes later, but Grace Gibbs (Arnold, Md. / Broadneck HS) answered with her first seven goals in the game.
Moravian struck twice more, one on a free position goal while a woman down followed by another free position goal less than a minute later. Gibbs carved up the Greyhound defense for another goal to tie it at three.
The Greyhounds scored the next five goals over the next 10 minutes to make it 8-3 with just under 11 to go in the half. Bertrando got one back for JC, Moravian scored on another free position attempt, and Paige Riker (Sussex, N.J. / Vernon Township) added her name to the scoresheet to make it 9-5.
Moravian scored one more with just over six minutes to go in the half, but two more Gibbs goals narrowed the deficit to three. But the visitors tacked on two more in the final minute and thirty seconds as JC trailed by five at the half, 12-7.
Gibbs struck again inside the first minute of the second half to bring Juniata within four, but the Greyhounds scored seven of the next eight goals to lead 19-9, with Bertrando tallying the lone JC goal.
Moravian expanded their lead to as many as 11 in the second half as JC couldn't quite keep the pace.
Isabella Medaris (Monroe, Conn. / Masuk H.S.) had five saves in the first half, while Chole Gerhard (Macungie, Pa. / Emmaus H.S.) made eight in the second.
Juniata will take on Elizabethtown, Wednesday at 6:00.
