The Army West Point women's lacrosse team went a perfect 5-0 at Michie Stadium in the non-league slate after defeating Virginia Commonwealth, 14-12, on Friday afternoon. The Black Knights (7-0) continued their hot start to the 2019 campaign and had three Cadets record hat tricks. Jackie Brattan paced the offensive attack with a team-high four goals, while Manuela Cortes and Rilee Scott chipped in with three goals apiece. Scott also tallied a pair of assists opposite the Rams (3-2). Army held the advantage on the draw control, 15-13, with Brattan, Samantha Stewart and Juliana Dworschak each notching five. Defensively, Lauren Bredenburg, had a standout game by recording four ground balls and four caused turnovers. ARMY HIGHLIGHTS AND GAME NOTES Army improved to 2-0 all-time versus VCU. The Black Knights posted double-digit goals for the seventh straight game. Dating back to last season, Army has won eight straight and scored double-digit goals in each. Brattan posted her sixth hat trick of the season and second straight four-goal outing. Cortes notched her fourth hat trick of the year. She passed Amy Johnston for second in all-time points with 107. Scott tallied her first hat trick of the season. Nikki Polhamus tied Kelsea Krauss for ninth in all-time goals with 22. Stewart tied Kayla Rowley for third in all-time ground balls with 63. Bredenburg moved to second all-time in caused turnovers with 34. Army outshot VCU, 39-25. HOW IT HAPPENED Army led 3-2 with less than 20 minutes remaining in the opening half before a Polhamus score sparked a 4-0 run. VCU responded with two goals of its own, but the Cadets closed out the half by outscoring the Rams, 3-1. During that stretch, Cortes posted a pair of goals. VCU notched two goals within the first seven minutes of the new half to pull within three, 10-7. However, four different Cadets found the back of the net and with 16 minutes left to play, Army held a 14-7 advantage. The Rams got into a rhythm and began to rally. With 15:52 on the clock, VCU posted five unanswered goals and pulled within two, 14-12, at the 1:35 mark. That would be as close as the Rams would get though as Taylor Korpela caused a turnover with 46 seconds remaining to give possession back to Army. UP NEXT The Black Knights will close out the non-league slate on Tuesday when they take on Villanova at 3 p.m. in Philadelphia.