Skyhawks' Victory Just Out of Reach

Boxscore

Easton, Mass. - Despite outscoring Adelphi University (9-0, 2-0 ECC) 7-5 in the second half, the Stonehill College Women's Lacrosse team (8-2, 6-0 Northeast-10 Conference) fell to the No. 2 ranked Panthers, 14-10 Saturday afternoon.  The loss is only the second for the Skyhawks, who sit atop the Northeast-10 standings with their perfect 6-0 Conference record still in tact.

The Skyhawks could not find an answer for Adelphi's leading scorer, junior Rachel Ray, who collected four scores and two assists in the win.  Three of Ray's scores came on free position shots.  Teammates Michelle Ceraso, Megan Metelenis, and Holly Burke each added two goals as the Panthers registered a season-high 14 tallies on the Skyhawks' defense.

Senior Amanda McGeachey (Saco, Maine/Thornton) turned in a season-best performance despite constant harassment from the Adelphi attackers.  McGeachey turned away nine shots for the Skyhawks, including four second-half rejections to keep the score tight for the Purple and White.  The senior goaltender also connected on seven of her eight clearing attempts, five for her last five in second-half.

The Skyhawks only lead came in the opening minutes from back-to-back goals from Liza Gross (Loudonville, N.Y./Shaker) and Kristin Darrell (West Islip, N.Y./West Islip).  With the score 3-2 in Stonehill's favor, Adelphi closed the half with seven unanswered scores to take a 9-3 advantage at the half.

Michelle Kelly (Mendham, N.J./West Morris Mendham) led a second half surge for the Skyhawks, scoring five of Stonehill's seven goals.  Christa LaRocco (West Islip, N.Y./West Islip) scored and added three assists in the final frame alone, but it was too little to late for the Stonehill squad.

Adelphi's Caitlin Fitzpatrick collected 11 saves for the Panthers in the win.  She denied the Skyhawks on every free position opportunity.

Darrell finished with two goals and two assists, moving her career total to 219 markers.  She is one away from tying Head Coach Katie Lambert for second place on the College's All-Time scoring list.

The Skyhawks will host Assumption on Wednesday.  The match is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. at W.B. Mason Stadium.