BLACK MOUNTAIN, N.C— The Montreat women's lacrosse team cruised to a 16-3 victory over the St. Andrews University Knights in its regular-season finale Saturday afternoon in Black Mountain, N.C. With the senior-day triumph at Pulliam Stadium, the Cavaliers closed out the regular season with a 7-5 record overall and a 4-3 record in Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) action.
 
Kate Gauntlett garnered her 100^th point of the year as she opened the scoring with a free-position goal just 52 seconds into the contest. The Cavs scored the initial seven goals of the afternoon and registered eight of the nine tallies in the opening quarter. St. Andrews finished off a free-position attempt for its lone goal of the period, while Dovie Yates recorded a hat trick and Gauntlett notched a pair to help Montreat lead by seven goals (8-1) through 15 minutes.
 
Like the first quarter, the Cavaliers controlled the possession and scoring chances in the second frame. Mina Hicks, Sydney Chivers, Aleea Bone and Yates built the Montreat lead out to 12-1 midway through the period. Following another SAU free-position goal, Bone capped off her hat trick thanks to a free-position strike with 12 seconds left in the half. As a result, the Cavs entered the intermission with a commanding 13-2 lead.
 
As anticipated going into the matchup, Montreat dominated across the board in nearly every major statistical category. Not only did the Cavaliers hold edges in ground balls (20-16) and draw controls (11-5), but they also took 21 more shots (25-4) and placed 18 more shots on target (20-2). Yates paced all athletes with four first-half goals, and Gauntlett led all athletes with five assists.
 
With a running clock in the second half, Montreat outscored the visitors 3-1 over the final 30 minutes of action. Izzy Knight and Bone grew the Cavalier lead up to 15-2 behind a pair of free-position tallies in the third quarter, and Gauntlett's hat trick-clinching free-position goal 61 seconds into the fourth handed the Cavs their largest advantage of the day.
 
St. Andrews (1-6, 1-6 AAC) slotted home its lone goal from open play with just 2:18 remaining in regulation as the Montreat defense stood tall and saw out a 16-3 AAC triumph.
 
The Cavaliers committed eight fewer turnovers than their counterparts (35-27), and they owned significant statistical advantages in ground balls (37-29), shots (43-6), shots on goal (31-3) and draw controls (14-7). While the Knights made 15 saves to Montreat's zero, SAU went just 6-for-28 on its clear attempts and surrendered seven free-position goals.
 
Bone and Yates led the way offensively with four goals, and Gauntlett added a hat trick to go along with her game-high five assists. Hicks also contributed a pair of goals and a trio of assists as the Cavs secured a senior-day victory.
 
The Montreat women's lacrosse team now turns its attention to the AAC Tournament, which is slated for April 20-22 in Waleska, Ga. Locked in as the No. 4 seed, the Cavs will face off against the fifth-seeded Tennessee Wesleyan University Bulldogs on Thursday, April 20 at 1:00 p.m.