EWING, N.J. – The No. 7 TCNJ women's lacrosse team turned the rematch of its tightest NJAC tilt into a runaway from the jump, rolling up an 8-0 first-quarter lead and scoring the game's first 13 en route to an 18-3 victory over fourth-seeded Kean in the semifinals of the NJAC Championship Tournament.

Ally Tobler led all scorers with four goals while Anna Devlin, Jennifer LaRocca, and Anna Wright chipped in three apiece for the Lions (14-2), who booked a spot in Saturday's championship against second-seed Rowan, an 18-9 winner over third-seeded Stockton. 

LaRocca dished out three assists, giving her 99 for her career, and Devlin corralled six draw controls to close within two of the single-season record.

The Lions were pushed to the brink in the teams' regular-season meeting up in Union, but Wednesday's rematch was a different affair entirely. After four scoreless minutes to open, TCNJ put its foot on the gas and exploded for four unanswered marks in a span of just over three minutes. Devlin started the spree with the first of three straight free-position coversions, the next two coming from Wright, before causing a turnover on a clear attempt and feeding a cutting Natalie Berry for a fast-break goal that made it 4-0 and forced a Kean timeout at the 7:52 mark of the opening period.

About two minutes later, Jillian Westerby extended the margin to five with a well-placed free-position effort. The Lions tacked on three more in the final 2-plus minutes of the frame, with Wright weaving through the defense for a brilliant individual tally to make it 6-0. LaRocca notched her first assist of the day on a feed to a cutting Devlin, then went low right on a free-position attempt to extend the spread to 8-0 with 20.7 ticks showing.

Despite holding a relatively slim 11-7 edge in shots in the first 15 minutes, the Lions put 10 of them on frame and scored on eight, which included five free-position strikes.

The onslaught continued in the second quarter. Tobler scored on a remarkable individual effort, getting off a shot while falling to the ground and scoring 53 seconds into the frame. The Lions set off a running clock on Westerby's weaving goal through the Kean defense at the 9:46 mark.

Tobler continued her personal show a few minutes later, taking a pass in front and using a series of moves to get free for a perfectly placed shot to make it 11-0. LaRocca made it a dozen, wheeling around the defense with a circling move that ended in a low shot into the back of the cage.

Tobler then sent the Lions into the break with a 13-0 advantage, depositing another free-position shot with 11 seconds left on the first-half ticker. The goal came off another failed clear for the Cougars, who were just 2-for-5 on first-half clears and 7-of-14 for the game.

Kean (8-9) broke up the shutout on Katie Pileggi's goal early in the third, but TCNJ regained the momentum quickly. Tobler netted her fourth of the day by stripping a Cougar player on a clear attempt and taking it all the way for a quick-strike goal.

Devlin completed her hat-trick with a free-position goal, then set up LaRocca's third of the day in the dying seconds of the third.

Kean scored the first goal of the fourth quarter before Wayden Ay netted back-to-back markers to cap the Lions' output. The Cougars scored the game's final goal on a free-position with 3:15 to play.

TCNJ outshot the Cougars, 31-17, and put 25 of those efforts on target. The Lions controlled a 15-8 surplus in the draw circle.

Westerby tacked on five draw controls and two caused turnovers to her two goals, while Tobler caused three turnovers on clearing attempts. She also led the Lions with three ground balls.

The Lions were a highly efficient 7-for-11 on free-position attempts.

Julia Charest was brilliant in the first quarter, turning away all four shots she faced. Those included a pair of free-position attempts and one shot from close range. She added another point-blank save midway through the second, finishing the first half with five, and made another incredible save in the second half to end the day with six.

The Lions go for their 11th consecutive NJAC title on Saturday.