Richmond Falls to No. 23 Penn State 10-9 in Season Opener

Saturday, February 7

Noon

University of Richmond

0-1, 0-0

Penn State

1-0, 0-0

Penn St.

Richmond

Richmond Falls to No. 23 Penn State 10-9 in Season Opener

02/07/2026 | Women's Lacrosse

Box Score

RICHMOND, Va. – The University of Richmond women's lacrosse team opened its 2026 season against No. 23 Penn State at Robins Stadium on Saturday afternoon. A fourth-quarter push by the Nittany Lions gave Penn State the 10-9 edge over the Spiders.

With the loss, Richmond starts the season 0-1, while Penn State moves to 1-0.

"Congrats to Penn State on a hard-earned win," head coach Anne Harrington said. "We are disappointed we couldn't finish things out down the stretch, but we saw a lot of positive play in all areas of the field. We got better today and showed that we are here to compete."

Meghan Rode led the Spiders with four points on two goals and two assists. Rode also paced the team in draw controls with 10. Alexis Morton recorded a hat trick, and Rileigh Meyer scored two goals. Keating Hopkins tallied two points on one goal and one assist, while Emma Kroneberger added one goal.

On the defensive side, CC Jacobs led the team with two caused turnovers and two ground balls. Mia Valerio also forced two turnovers and collected one ground ball.

In goal, Abby Francioli finished with nine saves and one ground ball in 60 minutes of play.

Penn State won the opening draw and struck first to take a 1-0 lead. Richmond responded with four straight goals to grab a 4-1 advantage with 10:36 remaining in the second quarter. After an exchange of goals to close the half, the game was tied 5-5 at halftime.

To open the third quarter, the Nittany Lions scored to regain the lead, but Richmond answered with back-to-back goals to go ahead 7-6. Penn State scored late in the period to even the game at 7-7 heading into the fourth.

In the final frame, Penn State scored two straight goals to take a 9-7 lead. The Spiders were able to net two more goals, but another tally by the Nittany Lions ultimately sealed the 10-9 win.

Up next for the Spiders is a road game at Virginia on Wednesday, Feb. 11.