GREENVILLE, Pa. -- The Washington & Jefferson women's lacrosse team used a stingy defensive effort to pick up an 8-6 road victory over Thiel College in a Presidents' Athletic Conference match Wednesday evening in Mercer County.

The victory moves W&J to 2-0 in PAC play and 4-4 overall. The loss drops Thiel to 1-1 in league action and 3-3 overall. The game served as a rematch of last year's PAC Tournament Championship match.

The Presidents gained an early lead and never trailed in the close low-scoring contest. Sofia Jenkins (Hughesville, Md./The Calverton School) tallied the game's first goal less than four minutes in to give W&J its first lead of the night. Destiny Johnson sandwiched a pair of goals around an unassisted goal by Clara Sherwood (Indiana, Pa./Indiana) and the teams ended the first quarter with the score tied at 2-2. 

Haley Lawyer (Glenside, Pa. / Archbishop Wood) helped the Presidents regain the lead with an unassisted tally at the 8:48 mark of the second quarter. The Tomcats tied the score (3-3) nearly five minutes later on a goal by Ashlyn Wightman. Amanda Effland (Frederick, Md./Frederick) gave W&J a 4-3 lead just before halftime, as she scored off an assist from Jenkins with 1:34 to play. 

W&J built its biggest lead in the third quarter, as Sarah Labovitz (Great Falls, Va./The Bullis School) and Effland found the back of the net in to give W&J a 6-3 advantage at the 11:31 mark. The Tomcats were able to hold the Presidents scoreless for the remainder of the third and close the deficit to within a single goal (6-5) on a score by Maddy Wightman in the final minute of the period. 

The Presidents stretched its lead to two (7-5) when Destiny Johnson of Thiel was assessed a yellow card in the fourth quarter. Labovitz blitzed the goal and scored unassisted to give W&J some breathing room with 8:05 to play. After the Tomcats again trimmed the deficit to a single goal, Aisa Uhler (East Lansing, Mich./East Lansing) helped W&J regain a two-goal lead. Effland found Uhler, who buried the ball into the back of the net with just 3:29 to play. 

Kaitlyn Brown (Charlotte Hall, Md./La Plata) was steady in goal all night, as she thwarted several Thiel opportunities to tie the score down the stretch. The sophomore goalkeeper finished with eight saves and picked up her third straight victory in net. 

Gabby Galla (Erie, Pa./Villa Maria Academy) produced team highs in ground balls (6) and caused turnovers (4) to help aid the defensive efforts. Effland surpassed 100 career points as she tallied three in the game. Effland was a factor in the midfield, as she registered a game-high eight draw controls. 

W&J returns home to host Chatham University on Saturday, April 9. First draw is set for 12 p.m. at Alexandre Stadium.