Jack Morgan | Staff Writer
After a brutal 20-2 loss in the City Game to start the 2024 season, things have changed in a drastic way for the Duquesne Dukes. They capped off a perfect homestand with a 12-9 win over the Akron Zips at Rooney Field on Tuesday.
“I thought they really gritted it out,” said Head Coach Corinne Desrosiers. “You could see them mentally slipping, and it’s our third game in six days, so they were definitely a little gassed.”
Mackenzie Leszczynski recorded four goals and two assists in the game, and the first came as a response to the first goal of the game from the Zips’ Macy Vail. The game continued to see-saw back and forth with both sides responding after being scored on. Duquesne started to break away with a 3-0 scoring run in the second quarter to make it 6-3. However, Akron went on a 3-0 run of their own, in less than two minutes. Jaelyn Clinkscales scored two of the three goals on that run to aid her team in tying the game. Corinne Webb and the Dukes snapped back with a quick goal before the end of the half to make it 7-6 at halftime.
Akron responded with two goals in the first four minutes of the third quarter. Heather Carey and Vail came through for the Zips and gave them an 8-7 lead. The game started to slow down from there, until Duquesne took full control.
Emma Raines kicked off the party, scoring off a feed from Leszczynski to tie the game at 8 with 3:18 to go in the third. Leszczynski scored the go-ahead goal just 44 seconds into the fourth and assisted on the next goal from Charlotte Stamper less than five minutes later.
Ali Evans got her first goal of the year a couple minutes after off a feed for Lindsay Newton. Jillian Caroselli put the dagger in the hearts of Akron fans when she scored with just over six minutes to play. Akron did tack on one more thanks to Clinkscales’ nifty goal, but it was too little, too late.
Desrosiers thought the Dukes did a good job finding a way to win the game, despite the difficulties of the six-day stretch they have been on.
“But they did it, they dug out of the hole that they kind of made for themselves, they took care of possessions a little bit more, not the way we would’ve liked to have seen it, but I’m kind of linking that up to a lot of fatigue.”
Duquesne did turn the ball over 20 times, but Akron turned over three more times.
Leszczynski scored her 100th career point in Tuesday’s contest, which only furthers the legacy she is building for Duquesne lacrosse.
“It is so exciting,” Leszczynski said. “Obviously our program has gone through a lot with wins and losses and people transferring in. We had a lot of transfers in here, people transferring out, so it’s so great to be able to stick with this program because I know how much this program has to offer, and I know how much I have to offer.”
Leszczynski will look to add to that tally this weekend in Radford, VA as the Dukes will take on the Radford Highlanders on Saturday. The action is set to get underway at 11 a.m.