Eastern Michigan Athletics
Wednesday, March 4
Nashville, Tenn.
12 p.m. CT
Eastern Michigan University
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Vanderbilt
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Eastern Mich.
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Photo by: Steve King/KingStudios
Porter Makes 21 Saves in Close Road Loss at Vanderbilt
3/4/2026 5:10:00 PM | Lacrosse
Junior goalkeeper posted a program-record 13 stops in the first half of play as well
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (EMUEagles.com) -- Maddy Porter recorded a program-record 21 saves in goal, Mackenzie Blackwell tallied her 35th career hat trick, and Tracy Grollman became the program's all-time assists leader as the Eastern Michigan University lacrosse team dropped a tough road battle at Vanderbilt University, 11-8, March 4, at the Vanderbilt Lacrosse Complex in Nashville, Tenn. The Eagles (5-3) finished their four-game road trip with a 2-2 record following their setback to the Commodores (3-3).
How It Happened
The game started slowly with both teams looking to find their footing with several turnovers tallied both ways before the Commodores struck first with a goal at 7:29. Later in the quarter, Porter (Montrose, N.Y./Hendrick Hudson) recorded her fifth save of the opening stanza and sent the ball long for EMU to start its attack. On the play, Emerson Henry (Ashburn, Ontario/Donald A. Wilson) fed a pass into the middle to Blackwell (North Beach, Md./Northern), who turned and fired the ball into the back of the net to tie the game at one with 3:41 to play. After another Porter save, her sixth, the Eastern offense went back to work with Henry driving inside and scoring high for a 2-1 lead at the end of the first.
The hosts opened the second quarter with a four-goal run that saw the Commodores take a 5-2 lead with 4:36 to play. The Eagles responded at 3:49 as Emma Reichert (Fishers, Ind./Hamilton Southeastern) tallied her third goal of the year as she hit the top right corner to halt the Vanderbilt run and cut the deficit to two goals. With 14 seconds to play, Blackwell netted her second of the game on a flip pass from Grollman (Annapolis, Md./Annapolis Area Christian School), who broke the career record for assists with her 46th, as EMU closed to within one goal, 5-4. The Commodores tried to reclaim a two-goal cushion in the waning seconds, but Porter was up to the task as she recorded two more saves in the final four seconds of the half to send the game into the intermission. Porter finished the half with 13 saves, which broke her own single-half record of 12 set in the first half against San Diego State at home, Feb. 9, 2025.
The defense for both teams stood tall for a majority of the third quarter with only two goals scored, both by Vanderbilt. The Commodores scored with 3:26 and 58.2 seconds to play in the stanza to build a 7-4 lead despite Porter recording four more saves to bring her game total to 17 at that time. In the fourth, Henry picked up her second of the day with 13:31 to play to halt a two-goal run by the hosts, but the Commodores would add two more to make it 9-5 with 9:03 showing. Reichert followed with her second of the day at 7:24, but VU scored two more goals to extend its lead to 11-6 with 1:23 to play. Despite the deficit and short clock, EMU continued to fight as Kyleigh Dill (Dover, Del./Dover) scored off a pass from Grollman with 40 seconds to play before Blackwell scored with four seconds remaining in the game to collect her 35th career hat trick and bring the game to an end, 11-8, in favor of the hosts.
Porter's performance saw the junior goalkeeper finish with a school-record 21 saves while collecting five ground balls. Her saves total surpassed the 20 she recorded her freshman season on the road at Marquette (March 17, 2024) and stands as the highest total in a single game in NCAA Division I this year as the previous high was 18 and ties for the fifth-highest total across all three divisions. The 21 saves also marked her third consecutive season with at least 18 stops in a single game after she also halted 18 in the opener with San Diego State, Feb. 9, 2025, last year. Porter, who entered the game with 54 saves on the year, has now stopped 75, which pushes her into the national lead, replacing Louisville's Haley Richards, who has recorded 73 in 2026.
Individual Notes
» Maddy Porter turned in a massive performance as she stopped a program-record 21 saves while adding five ground balls. The 21 saves surpassed the 20 she recorded at Marquette, March 17, 2024, during her rookie season and gave her 18+ saves in one game in each of her three collegiate seasons after halting 18 in the opener last year at home against San Diego State, Feb. 9, 2025. Her 21 saves are the most in a single game in 2026 among all NCAA Division I goalkeepers and tied for the fifth-most by a goalkeeper across all three NCAA divisions this year.
» Maddy Porter came out hot against Vanderbilt as she recorded six saves in the first quarter and seven in the second for 13 by halftime, which broke her own single-half record. The previous best was the 12 stops she authored in the first half of the San Diego State game, Feb. 9, 2025. It also marked the fourth time she has posted 10+ saves in a single half after recording 10 in both halves of the game at Marquette, March 7, 2024.
» Maddy Porter, who recorded five ground balls to bring her career total to 14 games with at least five scoops and 28 with three or more, has now stopped 386 shots in her career, leaving her 14 away from reaching 400. Holder of the 15 games with double-digit save totals, Porter has tallied 75 stops in 2026, which stands as the most in NCAA Division I and leaves 25 away from her third consecutive season with at least 100 saves.
» Mackenzie Blackwell recorded four points on three goals and one assist and completed her hat trick with four seconds remaining in the game to mark the latest goal scored in program history, surpassing her goal with nine seconds left at Duquesne, Feb. 15, 2024. Blackwell recorded her 35th career hat trick and 45th career multiple-goal game while bringing her career total to 170. She now has 192 career points, leaving her eight from becoming the first EMU player to reach 200. Additionally, her 32 points in 2026 marks the fourth consecutive year she has recorded at least 30 points.
» Tracy Grollman dished two assists in the game to bring her career total to 47 and breaking the tie for the program record she shared with Avery Schwab (2023-25). Grollman has now recorded multiple assists in four games this season and 11 times in her career with the Eagles.
» Emerson Henry tallied three points on two goals and one assist while adding one ground ball, one caused turnover, and three draw controls. Henry has now scored multiple goals in three consecutive games for nine total goals.
» Kyleigh Dill scored one goal in the game, marking her fourth consecutive game with one score. Her career-long streak is five games that she recorded last year.
» Emma Reichert finished the game with two goals to double her career total after scoring her first two goals against Lindenwood (Feb. 11). Reichert also collected two draw controls, the first two of her collegiate career.
» Erin Humphrey (Auburn Hills, Mich./Troy) was credited with two caused turnovers, which tied her career high for the fifth time and marked the fourth time this year she has recorded two in a game. With 10 caused turnovers on the season, Humphrey is second on the team in the category and joins Karly Low (Owen Sound, Ontario/Owen Sound District Secondary), who has 12, as the only Eagles with double-digit takeaways.
» Haley Hodak (Severn, Md./Old Mill) continued her solid play on defense as the senior recorded one ground ball and one caused turnover in the game. It marked the fifth time this year she has finished a game with at least one of each.
Team Notes
» With the loss, Eastern fell to 5-3 while Vanderbilt improved to 3-3 in 2026.
» The game marked the first against the Commodores and the third game this year against an opponent the Eagles had previously never played. Eastern is 2-1 against those foes after defeating Lindenwood, 14-11 (Feb. 11) at home, and Austin Peay, 13-10 (March 1) on the road.
Up Next
Eastern returns to action Sunday, March 8, with its first outdoor home game of 2026 as the Eagles will welcome the Bearcats of the University of Cincinnati to Scicluna Field in Ypsilanti. The game is scheduled for a 12 p.m. start and will be streamed live on ESPN+ with Ben Holden and Lindsey Chase on the call.
Follow Us
For all things EMU Lacrosse, be sure to check out the team's social media accounts, including EMU_Lacrosse on X (formerly Twitter) and EMU_Lacrosse on Instagram.
How It Happened
The game started slowly with both teams looking to find their footing with several turnovers tallied both ways before the Commodores struck first with a goal at 7:29. Later in the quarter, Porter (Montrose, N.Y./Hendrick Hudson) recorded her fifth save of the opening stanza and sent the ball long for EMU to start its attack. On the play, Emerson Henry (Ashburn, Ontario/Donald A. Wilson) fed a pass into the middle to Blackwell (North Beach, Md./Northern), who turned and fired the ball into the back of the net to tie the game at one with 3:41 to play. After another Porter save, her sixth, the Eastern offense went back to work with Henry driving inside and scoring high for a 2-1 lead at the end of the first.
The hosts opened the second quarter with a four-goal run that saw the Commodores take a 5-2 lead with 4:36 to play. The Eagles responded at 3:49 as Emma Reichert (Fishers, Ind./Hamilton Southeastern) tallied her third goal of the year as she hit the top right corner to halt the Vanderbilt run and cut the deficit to two goals. With 14 seconds to play, Blackwell netted her second of the game on a flip pass from Grollman (Annapolis, Md./Annapolis Area Christian School), who broke the career record for assists with her 46th, as EMU closed to within one goal, 5-4. The Commodores tried to reclaim a two-goal cushion in the waning seconds, but Porter was up to the task as she recorded two more saves in the final four seconds of the half to send the game into the intermission. Porter finished the half with 13 saves, which broke her own single-half record of 12 set in the first half against San Diego State at home, Feb. 9, 2025.
The defense for both teams stood tall for a majority of the third quarter with only two goals scored, both by Vanderbilt. The Commodores scored with 3:26 and 58.2 seconds to play in the stanza to build a 7-4 lead despite Porter recording four more saves to bring her game total to 17 at that time. In the fourth, Henry picked up her second of the day with 13:31 to play to halt a two-goal run by the hosts, but the Commodores would add two more to make it 9-5 with 9:03 showing. Reichert followed with her second of the day at 7:24, but VU scored two more goals to extend its lead to 11-6 with 1:23 to play. Despite the deficit and short clock, EMU continued to fight as Kyleigh Dill (Dover, Del./Dover) scored off a pass from Grollman with 40 seconds to play before Blackwell scored with four seconds remaining in the game to collect her 35th career hat trick and bring the game to an end, 11-8, in favor of the hosts.
Porter's performance saw the junior goalkeeper finish with a school-record 21 saves while collecting five ground balls. Her saves total surpassed the 20 she recorded her freshman season on the road at Marquette (March 17, 2024) and stands as the highest total in a single game in NCAA Division I this year as the previous high was 18 and ties for the fifth-highest total across all three divisions. The 21 saves also marked her third consecutive season with at least 18 stops in a single game after she also halted 18 in the opener with San Diego State, Feb. 9, 2025, last year. Porter, who entered the game with 54 saves on the year, has now stopped 75, which pushes her into the national lead, replacing Louisville's Haley Richards, who has recorded 73 in 2026.
Individual Notes
» Maddy Porter turned in a massive performance as she stopped a program-record 21 saves while adding five ground balls. The 21 saves surpassed the 20 she recorded at Marquette, March 17, 2024, during her rookie season and gave her 18+ saves in one game in each of her three collegiate seasons after halting 18 in the opener last year at home against San Diego State, Feb. 9, 2025. Her 21 saves are the most in a single game in 2026 among all NCAA Division I goalkeepers and tied for the fifth-most by a goalkeeper across all three NCAA divisions this year.
» Maddy Porter came out hot against Vanderbilt as she recorded six saves in the first quarter and seven in the second for 13 by halftime, which broke her own single-half record. The previous best was the 12 stops she authored in the first half of the San Diego State game, Feb. 9, 2025. It also marked the fourth time she has posted 10+ saves in a single half after recording 10 in both halves of the game at Marquette, March 7, 2024.
» Maddy Porter, who recorded five ground balls to bring her career total to 14 games with at least five scoops and 28 with three or more, has now stopped 386 shots in her career, leaving her 14 away from reaching 400. Holder of the 15 games with double-digit save totals, Porter has tallied 75 stops in 2026, which stands as the most in NCAA Division I and leaves 25 away from her third consecutive season with at least 100 saves.
» Mackenzie Blackwell recorded four points on three goals and one assist and completed her hat trick with four seconds remaining in the game to mark the latest goal scored in program history, surpassing her goal with nine seconds left at Duquesne, Feb. 15, 2024. Blackwell recorded her 35th career hat trick and 45th career multiple-goal game while bringing her career total to 170. She now has 192 career points, leaving her eight from becoming the first EMU player to reach 200. Additionally, her 32 points in 2026 marks the fourth consecutive year she has recorded at least 30 points.
» Tracy Grollman dished two assists in the game to bring her career total to 47 and breaking the tie for the program record she shared with Avery Schwab (2023-25). Grollman has now recorded multiple assists in four games this season and 11 times in her career with the Eagles.
» Emerson Henry tallied three points on two goals and one assist while adding one ground ball, one caused turnover, and three draw controls. Henry has now scored multiple goals in three consecutive games for nine total goals.
» Kyleigh Dill scored one goal in the game, marking her fourth consecutive game with one score. Her career-long streak is five games that she recorded last year.
» Emma Reichert finished the game with two goals to double her career total after scoring her first two goals against Lindenwood (Feb. 11). Reichert also collected two draw controls, the first two of her collegiate career.
» Erin Humphrey (Auburn Hills, Mich./Troy) was credited with two caused turnovers, which tied her career high for the fifth time and marked the fourth time this year she has recorded two in a game. With 10 caused turnovers on the season, Humphrey is second on the team in the category and joins Karly Low (Owen Sound, Ontario/Owen Sound District Secondary), who has 12, as the only Eagles with double-digit takeaways.
» Haley Hodak (Severn, Md./Old Mill) continued her solid play on defense as the senior recorded one ground ball and one caused turnover in the game. It marked the fifth time this year she has finished a game with at least one of each.
Team Notes
» With the loss, Eastern fell to 5-3 while Vanderbilt improved to 3-3 in 2026.
» The game marked the first against the Commodores and the third game this year against an opponent the Eagles had previously never played. Eastern is 2-1 against those foes after defeating Lindenwood, 14-11 (Feb. 11) at home, and Austin Peay, 13-10 (March 1) on the road.
Up Next
Eastern returns to action Sunday, March 8, with its first outdoor home game of 2026 as the Eagles will welcome the Bearcats of the University of Cincinnati to Scicluna Field in Ypsilanti. The game is scheduled for a 12 p.m. start and will be streamed live on ESPN+ with Ben Holden and Lindsey Chase on the call.
Follow Us
For all things EMU Lacrosse, be sure to check out the team's social media accounts, including EMU_Lacrosse on X (formerly Twitter) and EMU_Lacrosse on Instagram.
Team Stats
EASTERN
VANDERBI
Shots
20
47
Turnovers
20
13
Caused Turnovers
7
16
Draw Controls
8
12
Free-Position Shots
2
4
Ground Balls
11
23
Game Leaders
G
3
A
1
FO
-
Pen
-120
GB
1
CT
0
G
2
A
1
FO
-
Pen
-
GB
1
CT
1
G
2
A
0
FO
-
Pen
-
GB
0
CT
0
G
1
A
0
FO
-
Pen
-
GB
1
CT
0
Players Mentioned
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