Recap: Apuzzo leads team to 8-7 victory with 2 goals, 4 assists

Attacker Sam Apuzzo set the tone early in piloting her team to the victory, registering two goals with three assists en route to claiming MVP 1 honors. Apuzzo, who is serving as a captain for the sixth consecutive week, also grabbed three ground balls and ended the evening with a game-high 180 leaderboard points.

Goalkeeper Kady Glynn followed with the MVP 2 award after notching nine saves with just four goals allowed in 37 minutes. She also tallied two ground balls and finished with 178 leaderboard points.

Attacker Livy Rosenzweig, making her Athletes Unlimited debut, earned MVP 3 honors in the loss for Team Read after accumulating eight draw controls as part of her 39-point performance.

Attacker Scottie Rose Growney recorded a hat trick in the loss for Team Read, while midfielder Erica Evans added a pair of markers. Goalkeeper and team captain Britt Read chipped in 11 saves, including seven in the first half.

KEY MOMENT

Apuzzo was involved in five of Team Apuzzo’s first seven goals as the squad surged to a 7-2 lead in the first 24 minutes. The former Boston College star scored twice and dished out three assists during the surge to give her team the early advantage.

LEADERBOARD IMPACT

Apuzzo vaulted to the top of the leaderboard with her 180-point effort and has a 125-point margin over Glynn pending the results of Thursday’s nightcap between Team Moreno and Team Colson. Midfielder Grace Griffin also jumped up the leaderboard 19 spots after earning 149 points in the victory.

GAME NOTES

• Team Read and Team Apuzzo combined to register nine assists in Thursday’s Week Two opener, upping the league’s season total to 51 assists through seven games … Aspiration is committed to planting 10 trees for every assist during the season as part of its ‘Aspiration Assists’ initiative.

• Apuzzo extended her streak of consecutive multi-goal games to nine in a row after netting a pair of markers in the first half … She has now scored 25 goals during the nine-game stretch.

• Johansen recorded the 10th multi-goal game of her Athletes Unlimited career with two goals in the opening 20 minutes … Attacker Cortney Fortunato also scored twice to post the 14th multi-goal game of her career, which ranks fourth in league history.

• Read recorded her ninth career double-digit save performance in the loss on Thursday, which ranks second in Athletes Unlimited Lacrosse history behind goalkeeper Taylor Moreno’s 12 double-digit save performances.

• Goalkeeper Paulina DiFatta made her season debut after replacing Glynn to begin the fourth quarter … DiFatta made one save and allowed three goals in 3 minutes, 26 seconds.

• Defender Courtney Taylor accrued a season-high three caused turnovers in Thursday’s victory … It is the fourth time she has tallied three or more caused turnovers in her Athletes Unlimited career.

GAME MVPS

• #1 – Sam Apuzzo (Team Apuzzo, +45)
• #2 – Kady Glynn (Team Apuzzo, +30)
• #3 – Livy Rosenzweig (Team Read, +15)