Anderson racks up nine points to lead Skyhawks to seventh consecutive win

EASTON, Mass. (March 29, 2011) – Stonehill College, currently ranked sixth in the Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) Division II national poll, got a career-high eight goals from senior Hannah Anderson (Eden Prairie, Minn./Eden Prairie) to power a 21-5 victory over Northeast-10 Conference opponent Bentley University on Tuesday afternoon.

Anderson’s eight goals matched the second-highest single-game total in program history as the Skyhawks took the lead after ten minutes and never relinquished it. Junior Sarah Galligan (West Newbury, Mass./Pentucket Regional) scored four times and picked up two assists for a six-point day, and junior Sam Lynott (Holbrook, N.Y./East Sachem) added two goals and a game-high four caused turnovers.

Sophomore Cori Geiger (Agawam, Mass./Agawam) led Bentley with two goals, staking the Falcons to an early lead when she scored in the third minute of play following a Stonehill turnover. Sophomore Kayla Green (Londonderry, N.H./Londonderry) quickly equalized for the Skyhawks, converting the second of two straight free-position attempts within the next 30 seconds, and Anderson and Galligan went on the attack to combine for the next four goals to send the Skyhawks ahead 5-1.

Kayla Green scored three times, including a free-position conversion.

Geiger and freshman Chelsea Larivee (Amherst, N.H./Souhegan) scored two straight to pull Bentley within three goals, but Galligan responded with an unassisted tally and Anderson dropped in two more inside the last minute of the half.

Bentley increased the offensive pressure to manage 13 shots during the second half, but were held to two goals by sophomore goaltender Rebecca Moore (Marlborough, Mass./St. Mark's School), who was called on for eight second-half saves and finished the day with ten total. Lynott netted both of her goals within a three-minute span early in the half and Anderson added three more, collecting two goals and an assist as part of a 5-0 Stonehill run to end it.

The Skyhawks held their opponents to five goals or fewer for the third consecutive game, driven by the defensive efforts of freshman Kelsey Shannahan (Mendham, N.J./Morris Catholic), who recorded five ground balls and two caused turnovers, and seniors Devin O’Leary (Framingham, Mass./Framingham) and Emily Kerwin (Bristol, R.I./Portsmouth Abbey), each with two ground balls and a caused turnover.

Stonehill (7-0, 4-0 NE-10) visits Saint Anselm College on Thursday at 4 p.m. before returning home to host the University of New Haven on Saturday at 11:30 a.m.