WESTERVILLE, Ohio – The Calvin women's lacrosse team picked up its first victory of the year in commanding fashion on Saturday afternoon. The Knights finished the weekend trip to Ohio with a 19-5 victory. The Maroon and Gold improve to 1-2 on the year and send the Cardinals to 2-5.

"We played well today," said head coach Blake Boehm. "The team felt relaxed and was really seeing the field well. We came into the game with a positive outlook on our priorities and maintained a focused mindset throughout the game."

Senior Emma Hall (Harare, Zimbabwe/Chisipite Senior School) opened the scoring on Saturday with her first goal of the season. Junior Kelly Pepper (Wyckoff, N.J./Indian Hills) was credited with the assist, the first of many on a career-best day.

Junior Emma Tilma (Grand Rapids, Mich./Grand Rapids Christian) was the next Knight to tack onto the scoreboard at the 25:25 mark of the first half. Pepper once again threw in the assist.

20 seconds later, Kelly Pepper snuck the ball past the keeper, with junior Lauryn Slachter (Grand Rapids, Mich./Grand Rapids Christian) having the assist.

On a free position shot, senior Amanda Davio (Okemos, Mich./Okemos) found the back of the net.

Emma Tilma scored her second goal of the afternoon to put the Knights up five goals.

At the 20:10 mark, Davio notched her second goal of the day.

Emma Verrett joined the goal party with 18:59 remaining in the first half.

After already having four assists and a goal, Kelly Pepper gave the Knights an 8-0 lead on a free position shot.

A shot from junior Grace Einfeld (Grand Rapids, Mich./Grand Rapids Christian) made it a 9-0 game. Junior Genevieve Schneemann (Farmington, Mich./Farmington) was credited with the assist.

A goal from Lauryn Slachter on a free position shot gave Calvin a 10-0 lead.

With 13:07 left in the first half, the Cardinals put themselves on the scoreboard.

The Knights responded with goals from Emma Tilma and Amanda Davio, to lead, 12-2, at halftime.

The Maroon and Gold opened the second half on a 6-0 run.

In the first five minutes of the second half, Lauryn Slachter, Amanda Davio and Emma Tilma all recorded goals for Calvin.

Being down a player did not slow down the Knights. Sophomore Allyson Mesman (Jenison, Mich./Hudsonville) and Lauryn Slachter both scored short-handed goals to push the lead to 17-2. Kelly Pepper had an assist on both of those goals.

The final Calvin goal of the run came from Genevieve Schneemann at the 15:31 mark of the second half.

Kelly Pepper tallied the final Calvin goal of the afternoon, up a player.

Senior Madeline Baas (Grand Rapids, Mich./Grand Rapids Christian) controlled the draw control game on Saturday, finishing with 10, compared to six total for Otterbein.

Freshman Meghan Economou (Hartland, Mich./Hartland) recorded her first victory as a Knight, finishing with four saves and a game-high five ground balls.

Genevieve Schneemann followed behind with four ground balls.

The Knights featured a balanced attack against Otterbein, with nine players recording a goal. Amanda Davio and Emma Tilma both scored four goals.

Kelly Pepper had a career day against the Cardinals with a career-high 11 points on three goals and eight assists. The eight assists are also a career high.

The Knights return to action on March 19 under the Florida sun. The Maroon and Gold will play three games, starting with Williams.