ST. JOSEPH, Mo. — For the first time ever, Griffon Lacrosse is off to a 2-0 start.

Missouri Western defeated McKendree 17-8 on Sunday in the Griffons' 2024 home-opener at Spratt Stadium. Sam Pruitt led the way with a career-high eight points, tallying a season-high four goals and season-high four assists. Western as a whole recorded four hat-tricks, with Brooke Tjernlund and Serah Ryals both scoring scoring four times and Jordan Porter scoring three times. 

HOW IT HAPPENED
The Griffons jumped out to a 4-2 start at the end of the first quarter, led by two goals apiece from Porter and Pruitt. Western outscored McKendree 5-1 in the second thanks to five different Griffons scoring and held a 9-3 halftime lead. Highlighted by goals from Mikaela Ness and Clare Sondrall, MWSU outpaced 8-5 for the remaining two quarters to pick up the 17-8 win.

NOTABLES

• Mackenzie Porter led the way with a team-high five ground balls.
• Porter also had a season-high seven saves.
• Ness had a team-high six draw controls.
• Grace Williams racked a game-high four caused turnovers. 
• This is MWSU's first home-opener win since the first-ever Griffon Lacrosse game in 2021. 

UP NEXT
Western will play William Jewell (1-1) in a non-conference matchup next Friday at 5 p.m. in Liberty, Missouri. The Cardinals most recently fell to Missouri Baptist 15-6 on Feb. 9 in Liberty.