March 3, 2001

HARRISONBURG, Va. — The Notre Dame women’s lacrosse team opened its 2001 season with a 15-4 loss at eighth-ranked James Madison on Saturday. Junior Natalie Loftus led the Irish with two goals, while freshman Kassen Delano and senior Lael O’Shaughnessy also netted scores for Notre Dame, which loses its first season opener in five varsity women’s lacrosse seasons. The Dukes opened a 7-1 lead with six goals in the first 14 minutes of play. The Irish pulled within 7-3 with the first two goals of the second half before James Madison scored eight of the game’s last nine goals for the win.

The game originally was schedules to be played on Sunday but was moved to Saturday because of impending inclement weather on Sunday. The Irish return to action when they play their first-ever BIG EAST women’s lacrosse game on Tues., March 13, at Virginia Tech.

Five different players scored for James Madison, including four by sophomore Lisa Staedt. Irish sophomore goaltender Jen White made seven saves in 45:10 of action, while senior Tara Durkin had one save in 14:50. The Dukes out shot the Irish 28-20 and controlled 14 of 22 draws, while Notre Dame had 28 groundballs to 15 for James Madison. The Irish made 23 turnovers to 20 for the Dukes.