Golden Eagles beat Detroit Mercy 19-7 in first road win

Benjamin Hanson, Sports Reporter • February 28, 2024

(Photo courtesy of Marquette Athletics.)

It was a slow start for Marquette women’s lacrosse (2-3) against Detroit Mercy (0-4) with snowy conditions and a wind advisory in Detroit.

Though, when the Golden Eagles finally got their engine warmed and windshield defrosted, there was no looking back, ending in a 19-7 win over the Titans Wednesday afternoon after leading by only two goals at halftime.

It was Marquette’s first road win of the year and stopped its three-game losing streak.

Saves keep Detroit in the game

Right away, Marquette showed up with a quick two goals in the first three minutes from junior attacker Meg Bireley and junior midfielder Hanna Bodner.

But the Titans responded.

During the rest of the quarter, Marquette let up four goals while only connecting on one of their own, making it 4-3 Detroit after the first period of play.

With 4:32 left in the half, senior midfielder Leigh Steiner rolled to her right and found an open lane in front of the goal. Taking advantage of her 5-foot-11 frame, Steiner worked the ball over her defenders and scored her second goal on the day.

Second of the day for Leigh!#WeAreMarquette pic.twitter.com/LpfO2Biedm

— Marquette Women’s Lacrosse (@MarquetteWLax) February 28, 2024

This gave Marquette the momentum to make two more goals in a row, ending the half up 8-6.

Titans goalie Meredith Leavell was one reason why Marquette wasn’t up more. She was able to make 11 saves on 17 shots on goal, compared to the Golden Eagles’ three saves.

Steiner started the fire

Steiner’s second goal catapulted the Golden Eagles to a near shut-out performance for the remainder of the game.

After coming out of the half, Marquette halted Detroit’s offense and created 13 goals in a row.

After the dust settled, the Golden Eagles put up 32 shots on goal while Detroit could only create 12. With this, Coach Black’s squad had nine unique scorers with five of them scoring over one.

Highlights 📹

All 19 goals this afternoon in the win at Detroit Mercy.#WeAreMarquette pic.twitter.com/4Mu6YHSnS0

— Marquette Women’s Lacrosse (@MarquetteWLax) February 28, 2024

Up next

The Golden Eagles will travel to Niagara Falls, New York, to play Niagara Sunday at 11 a.m. CST. This will be the last of their five-game road stint.

This article was written by Ben Hanson. He can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @benhansonMU.

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About the Contributor

Benjamin Hanson, Sports Reporter

Ben Hanson is a sophomore from Minneapolis, Minnesota studying journalism, digital media and advertising. He is a sports reporter and the assistant social media producer for the Marquette Wire for the 2023-2024 school year. When he's not in the newsroom, he likes creative writing, being with friends and going to sporting events. He is excited to be able to spread the word of the Marquette Wire because it has done so much for him while also refining his sports writing.