Box Score SLIPPERY ROCK, PA – A career-high seven goals from Drew Hayden (Gibsonia/Pine Richland) propelled the seventh-ranked Crimson Hawks to a 15-6 victory over Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference rival Slippery Rock on Tuesday night.
 
Hayden scored four of her goals in the first, and capped that off with a three-goal performance in the second.
 
The Crimson Hawks dominated from the get go, as reigning PSAC Lacrosse Athlete of the Week Amy Weinberg (Clarksville, MD/Atholton) recorded her 20th goal of the season on a pass from Brittney Palardy (Perry Hall, MD/Perry Hall) after three and a half minutes of play.
 
The scoring went cold for the next nine minutes, as neither team was able to get off a good shot. Over the course of that time, the teams had a combined eight turnovers. The Crimson Hawks did manage to test SRU goalie Jordan Wagner who was forced to make four saves within that time.
 
The Rock tied the game 1-1 at the 17:47 minute mark when Paige Costantino connected on a shot from inside the circle.
 
That ignited the Crimson Hawks' offense as they went on a 5-0 run over the next four minutes of play. Michelle Zakrzewski (Purcellville, VA/Loudoun Valley) gave IUP the 2-1 advantage on a free position goal and less than a minute late, Kim Hooven (Malvern/Great Valley) made it 3-0 on a pass from Weinberg.
 
Alex Edwards (Bethlehem/Nazareth) gave the Crimson Hawks the 4-1 advantage at the 14:16 minute mark and back-to-back goals from Hayden made it 6-1 with just over 13 minutes to go in the first.
 
Slippery Rock would score the next two to cut the IUP lead in half with just under 10 to play, but IUP responded with three goals of its own to take the 9-3 advantage into the break.
 
In the first half, the Crimson Hawks dominated The Rock in nearly every category, outshooting them 26-11. They dominated on defense as well, with 10 draw controls to SRU's three.
 
Hooven got the scoring started in the second half after seven minutes of play, giving IUP the seven-goal advantage. Costantino scored SRU's fourth goal at the 21:39 minute mark to cut the IUP lead to six.
 
Three straight goals from the Crimson Hawks gave IUP the 13-5 advantage with just over 15 minutes to play.
 
Slippery Rock answered with two goals of its own to pull within seven, but goals from Hayden and Palardy closed the game out for the Crimson Hawks as they claimed their seventh straight win.
 
It was much of the same in the second half, as IUP again outshot The Rock 17-7. IUP grabbed 14 ground balls compared to SRU's eight but earned just four draw controls, compared to six from The Rock.

Goalie Katie Davis (Owings Mills, MD/Mercy) played all 60 minutes for the Crimson Hawks, making five saves.
 
Hayden finished the evening with a career-high seven goals, adding one assist four ground balls, two caused turnovers and a draw control. Hooven had another dominant night, scoring four goals and adding two ground balls.
 
Alex Edwards (Bethlehem/Nazareth), Zakrzewski, Palardy and Weinberg all got on the scoresheet for the Crimson Hawks.
 
Defensively, Taylor Norwood (Chantilly, VA/Chantilly) registered three ground balls, five caused turnovers and five draw controls. Weinberg added four ground balls, one caused turnover and three draw controls.
 
Hayden now sits in sixth place in the conference in goals per game, averaging 3.55. Weinberg's 3.18 assists is good for third in the PSAC and her 5.00 points ranks fourth. 
 
Having yet another solid year, Norwood ranks in the top 15 in the three major defensive categories. She is currently second in caused turnovers per game with 2.82, sixth in draw controls per game with 4.45 and 10th in ground balls per game with 2.91
 
As a team, IUP sits atop the conference in goals, averaging 17.00 per game. They are second in assists per game, adding 8.64 per game, and second in points per game, averaging 25.64. Not just an offensive powerhouse, the Crimson Hawks are first in the PSAC in ground balls per game with 26.55 and caused turnovers per game with 12.91. They are third in draw controls per game with 15.00 and average just 17.64 turnovers per game.  
 
With the win, IUP improves to 9-2, 7-0 on the season in first place in the PSAC. They are winners of their last seven, including two victories over top ranked programs.
 
IUP will wrap up its two-game roadtrip, traveling to Kuztown on Saturday for a 3 p.m. matchup with the Golden Bears. They'll finish off their season with a four-game homestand, hosting Mercyhurst, Shippensburg, West Chester and Bloomsburg. The first round of the PSAC tournament kicks off on April 29.