SHEPERDSTOWN, W.V. (March 13, 2016) -- As they have done all season, the Edinboro Univeristy women's lacrosse team jumped out to an early lead and used a solid first half of offense and uncanny defense, particularly from goalkeeper Paige Skinner, to post an 11-2 win at Shepherd on Sunday. The victory gave the Fighting Scots their second straight 4-0 start, while first-year head coach Caitlin Formato remains undefeated for her career. Shepherd dropped to 1-5.

While the Rams outshot Edinboro, 32-23, and had 13 free-position opportunities, it was Skinner's goaltending that allowed the Scots to walk away with the sizable win. Her 17 saves against Shepherd is tied for second all-time in one contest in school history as the sophomore improved to 3-0 on the year.

The Scots tallied a quick 2-0 lead just three minutes, 25 seconds into the contest with goals by Anna Purdy and Cydney Hrycko. However, Edinboro would be challenged when the Rams' Brooke Hunley netted a goal off a failed clear attempt by the Scots to trim the Boro's lead to one goal with 24:31 to play in the half. Both teams were held scoreless over nearly the next six minutes. The Rams attempted two shots in that span, only to be turned away both times by Skinner.

Purdy stepped up again for the Scots, finding the back of the net off a pass by Hannah Fitzgerald to give Edinboro some breathing room at 3-1 with 18:32 to go in the half. It would be all Edinboro from that point on, as the Scots reeled off five unanswered goals to take an 8-1 lead at intermission. Purdy made it a hat trick, her fourth of the year, with a free-position goal for a 4-1 Scots lead, followed by two consecutive goals each from Emily Peters and Hrycko, with the latter earning her third hat trick of the season.

Offense took a back seat in the second half, as strong defense from both sides saw just four goals occurring in the last 30 minutes. Shepherd's Erin Phelan broke the ice in the closing half with a free-position goal to cut Edinboro's lead to six goals with 25:24 to go in the match. It would be the Rams' last goal of the contest. Peters earned her third hat trick of the year with a goal from inside the circle to bring the Boro's lead back up to seven goals with 22:50 left to play. Hrycko added a fourth goal to her credit on a free position shot with 19:10 to play, while Rachel Olson capped the scoring with a free-position goal with 2:19 remaining.

Shepherd goalie Savannah Shores registered seven saves as she fell to 1-5 on the season. Edinboro completed 25-of-33 clear attempts, while the Rams made 21-of-27 clear attempts. The Fighting Scots committed 26 turnovers to Shepherd's 24, as the Rams grabbed 22 ground balls, compared to 16 for the Boro.

The contest concluded a four-match southern trip for the Fighting Scots, as they prepare to begin their PSAC season at Slippery Rock on Tuesday at 5:00 p.m.