Late First-Half Surge Too Much for Women’s Lacrosse in 19-10 Loss to No. 17 Assumption

RINDGE, N.H. (April 18, 2019) – The Franklin Pierce University women's lacrosse team jumped out to a 4-3 lead after scoring three straight goals leading up to the midpoint of the first half on Thursday afternoon, but No. 17 nationally ranked Assumption took control from there. The Greyhounds scored the next seven goals to push out to a 10-4 lead and would not be seriously challenged the rest of the way. Four different players finished with at least four points as Assumption went on to a 19-10 victory in Northeast-10 Conference play at Sodexo Field. Freshman attack Savannah Ernst (American Fork, Utah) tallied five points on four goals and an assist for Franklin Pierce.

With the loss, Franklin Pierce falls to 6-7 (3-7 NE10) and has dropped five in a row, while Assumption improves to 11-4 (7-4 NE10).

Franklin Pierce hung in with the nationally ranked Greyhounds over the opening 15 minutes. After Assumption scored three of the first four, the Ravens used a pair of goals by sophomore midfielder Zoe Totland (Salt Lake City, Utah), as well as a pair of assists from freshman midfielder Kaitlyn Daly (LaGrangeville, N.Y.), to key a three-goal spurt to take a 4-3 lead with 15:45 to play in the first half.

From there though, Assumption seized control of the proceedings. The Greyhounds ran off the next seven goals, over a span of 8:49, to take the lead and push it all the way out to 10-4. Senior attack Kailyn Hart and junior midfielder Callie Dwyer scored twice each on the run, while Dwyer dished out an assist as well.

Ernst added the first of her four goals in the period's final minute to make it 10-5 heading into halftime. Assumption put the final stake through the heart of the game on the other side of the break, as they came out of halftime with five of the first six goals of the second half as well, to make it 15-6 with 14 minutes to play in the second half. In all, it was a 12-2 run for the Greyhounds over nearly 30 minutes of play after Franklin Pierce had taken the 4-3 lead.

Ernst (4-1-5) and Daly (1-2-3) were the only players to score three or more points for Franklin Pierce, while Totland put home a pair of goals. Freshman midfielder Jenna Cimbron (Bristol, R.I.) led all players with six ground balls, while sophomore attack Caroline Lounsbury (Franklin, Mass.) snagged five draw controls. Cimbron also caused a game-high four turnovers.

For Assumption, senior attack Sarah Reilly (5-1-6), Hart (4-2-6), junior midfielder Emily Spath (3-2-5) and Dwyer (3-1-4) all notched at least four points apiece, while sophomore attack Olivia Angelo added three more (2-1-3) and freshman attack Jill Good scored twice. Hart and graduate student midfielder Meghan Cushing picked up four ground balls each, while sophomore defender Marran Oakman collected seven draw controls to lead all players.

Freshman goalkeeper Megan Bacik (Huntington Station, N.Y.) logged 54:40 in the Franklin Pierce net and suffered the loss (6-7) after making 11 saves against 27 shots on goal. Junior Casey Butera (West Milford, N.J.) came on for the final 5:20 and made two saves against five shots.

Freshman netminder Allie Collins (10-4) went the distance in the Assumption crease and finished with 14 saves against 24 shots.

The Ravens return to the field on Wednesday, April 24, when they travel to Merrimack for an NE10 contest. Game time is set for 7 p.m. at Duane Stadium in North Andover, Mass. 

For more information on Franklin Pierce Athletics, please visit the official website of Franklin Pierce Athletics (https://www.fpuravens.com). Also be sure to follow the Ravens through the Department of Athletics' official Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/FranklinPierceRavens), its YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/franklinpiercesports) and its Twitter feed (http://twitter.com/FPUathletics). Fans wishing to purchase Franklin Pierce lacrosse apparel can do so at the Department of Athletics' online store (https://www.fpuravens.com/store).