ROCK ISLAND – The Augustana Vikings women's lacrosse team battled Augsburg in their home debut on Sunday, defeating the Auggies by an 18-16 final to improve to 2-0 for the first time in eight seasons. 

The Auggies leaped to a two-point advantage in the opening frame before Augustana responded with five straight points. Elena Bechard scored two goals during that burst before securing an opening-quarter hat trick after back-to-back scores from Augsburg. The two teams exchanged goals early in the second quarter before Augustana pulled ahead by five at the half behind a 4-1 run. Claire Kim scored three of Augie's five goals in the second period.

The Vikings started the third quarter with a 4-1 run behind three consecutive goals from Bechard. The Auggies responded with four unanswered points to cut Augustana's lead to three entering the final frame. Kim grabbed her fifth goal of the contest to start the fourth quarter before Augsburg scored three straight to cap off a 7-1 scoring outburst and cut the Vikings' lead to one. Bechard scored on a woman-up opportunity with just over three minutes remaining before earning her ninth score at the 1:36 mark. Her nine goals place her third in program history for goals in a single game, trailing only Hilary Kargyl, who reached marks of 10 and 14 in 2012. Augustana survived a last-second score from the Auggies to win their second game of the season 18-16.

Behind Bechard, Kim and Madison Langewisch finished next in line with five and four goals, respectively. The Vikings boasted a plus-14 advantage in ground balls, led by Langewisch's nine. Rachel Forman grabbed 13 saves and earned the win in net.

With the win, the Vikings improve to 2-0 on the season. The team will remain at Thorson-Lucken Field for a non-conference bout against Cornell on Wednesday, March 8. Start time is scheduled for 6:00 p.m.