Leach nets five goals, including three in fourth quarter comeback, while Murphy posts four points with go-ahead goal with 2:52 to play

Murphy totaled four points with two goals, including the go-ahead tally with 2:52 to play, and two assists. (PHOTO BY Mary Gettens, '23)

NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. (April 24, 2024) – Sophomore Grace Murphy  scored with 2:52 remaining in the fourth quarter to give Stonehill College its first lead of the day as the Skyhawks scored seven-straight goals to erase a five-goal deficit entering the fourth quarter for a 14-13 triumph over Merrimack College in a Northeast Conference women's lacrosse matchup at Duane Stadium this afternoon.

With the win, Stonehill (8-8, 7-3 NEC) clinches the No. 4 seed and home field advantage for its NEC Tournament first round matchup with No. 5 Saint Francis University (8-7, 7-3 NEC) at W.B. Mason Stadium on Sunday at noon. The Skyhawks, winners of a record ten tournament championships as members of the Northeast-10 Conference prior to starting its transition to NCAA Division I, is making its debut in the NEC Tournament in its first season of eligibility after being granted access at the NEC Presidents' Meetings last June.

Stonehill trailed by five goals on three separate occasions in the contest, including entering the final quarter, with senior Lilly Leach netting three of her game-high five goals in the fourth quarter as the Skyhawks scored the first seven goals of the frame to grab the lead for the first time all day. Murphy's second goal of the day, as part of a four-point afternoon with a pair of goals and assists, pushed Stonehill in front for the first time with 2:52 remaining, before Leach gave the Skyhawks a two-goal cushion with an important insurance goal with 1:29 on the clock on a free-position goal.

Leach scored three of her team-leading five goals in the fourth quarter to lead the Skyhawks comeback. (PHOTO BY Mary Gettens, '23)

Leach added five draw controls to her five goals, while Murphy added a caused turnover and ground ball to her four-point tally. Senior Molly Mae Hughes contributed three goals and an assist for four points, with two draw controls, while junior Sofia D'Agostino and sophomore Natalie Coutu each chipped in with a goal, assist and caused turnover.

Senior Claire Smith posted her ninth double-figure save total of the season (11^th career) with 11 stops in goal for Stonehill, collecting two ground balls. Junior Hayley Kowalczyk finished with eight saves, three ground balls and a caused turnover for Merrimack.

Postgrad Sophie Scearbo led Merrimack with a game-high seven points on five goals and two assists, adding three draw controls, while freshman Lindsay Atkinson added three goals and an assist off the bench. Postgrad Natalie Calkins netted two goals, while sophomore Grace Boneu registered a goal and two assists for the Warriors.

How it Happened

• Merrimack, which needed a win for a chance at a spot in the NEC Tournament, started fast and scored the first four goals of the game to grab the initiative early.
• Scearbo and senior Georgia Parker each recorded a goal an assist during the first quarter Merrimack run, with the Warriors scoring the first three goals in the run in the opening five minutes.
• After Boneu gave Merrimack the four-goal lead with 3:33 remaining in the opening quarter, Coutu got Stonehill on the scoreboard, assisted by Murphy, 31-seconds later.
• Merrimack followed with two more goals on either side of the first and second quarter to grab its first five goal lead (6-1) on Scearbo's second of the game on a free-position attempt 62-seconds into the second after assisting on Calkins first goal of the game with 1:43 remaining in the first.
• Stonehill scored four of the next five goals, including three-straight to end the second quarter, to pull within two (7-5) at halftime after two-straight goals from Hughes in the final five minutes of the half.
• Merrimack reclaimed a four-goal cushion (9-5) as Atkinson had a hand in the first two goals of the third quarter with a goal an assist in the opening 3:03.

• Hughes added three goals and an assist for the the Skyhawks (PHOTO BY Mary Gettens, '23)

  Leach and Murphy responded with free-position goals 1:28 apart to draw Stonehill back within two (9-7) with 8:53 to play in the third quarter, but Merrimack scored the final three goals of the third, including two-straight from Scearbo in the final 5:16 of the frame, to give the Warriors its third five-goal lead (12-7) of the contest heading to the fourth quarter.
• Leach and Hughes sparked the Stonehill comeback with goals two minutes apart that pulled the Skyhawks back within three (12-9) with 11:30 still to play.
• Stonehill continued to chip away, drawing even with Leach's second of the quarter from the eight-meter arc with 4:22 to play.
• Murphy gave Stonehill its first lead of the day 90-seconds later with her second goal of the game and then Leach provided a needed insurance marker with 1:29 on the clock with her third of the quarter.
• Merrimack pulled back within a goal on a free-position tally by junior Samantha Spieler, but just eight seconds remained and despite winning the ensuing draw the Warriors were unable to get a tying shot off.

Noteworthy

• Hughes' three goals sees her reach an NEC-leading 50 goals in a season for the second time after notching 54 markers as a sophomore in 2022, posting her 13^th multi-goal game of the season.
• Leach's three draw controls give her 307 for her career, now just six shy of Kelsey Reilly's, '13 program mark of 313. Her NEC-leading 119 draw controls this season is tied with Reilly (2013) for fourth on the Skyhawks all-time single-season list.
• Leach has scored five goals in two-straight games and in three of the last four contests, giving her multiple goals in 11 games this season overall, including three-plus goals in eight games.
• Murphy posted her 12^th multi-goal game of the season and third multi-assist outing.
• Smith's 11 saves give her 149 for the spring to crack Stonehill's all-time single-season top ten and move into eighth place on the list.'
• Coutu's NEC-high 36 assists is tied for seventh on Stonehill's all-time single-season list with head coach Katie (Lambert) Conover, '03 in 2002.
• Stonehill will host its fourth-straight Conference tournament game after hosting all three rounds of the 2022 NE10 Tournament, capped by a 13-12 overtime victory over fellow current NEC Tournament participant Le Moyne College in the title game to capture its tenth NE10 crown.

Up Next

Stonehill (8-8, 7-3 NEC) is back in action on Sunday when it hosts Saint Francis University in the first round of the 2024 NEC Tournament at W.B. Mason Stadium at noon. Merrimack (4-12, 4-6 NEC), which needed a win and Wagner College loss to Delaware State University (Wagner won, 16-6) to earn a spot in the NEC Tournament, sees its season draw to a close.

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