BULLDOGS FALL TO SACRED HEART, 17-8, SATURDAY AFTERNOON ON THE ROAD
March 21, 2010
BULLDOGS FALL TO SACRED HEART, 17-8, SATURDAY AFTERNOON ON THE ROAD
SMITHFIELD, R.I. – Sophomore Lauren Sheridan (Bethpage, N.Y.) scored three goals and added an assist to lead the Bryant University women’s lacrosse team, but it wouldn’t be enough as the Bulldogs fell to Sacred Heart, 17-8, in Northeast Conference action Sunday in Fairfield, Conn.
Sacred Heart’s Alicia Fuchs would record a game-high seven points off four goals and three assists while Kate Kmiotek collected five points on four goals and one helper to pace the home side.
Five goals would score in the opening five minutes of the contest as Sacred Heart (4-4, 2-0 Northeast Conference) jumped out to a 4-1 lead with 24 minutes still to play in the opening half.
Cori Horelik had a hand in the Pioneers’ first two scores, giving the home team a 2-0 lead less than three minutes into the contest. Horelik got the scoring started just over a minute in and assisted on a Carissa Hauser tally 1:47 later.
Sheridan would cut Sacred Heart’s lead in half 1:30 later with a free position tally to move the score to 2-1. But in a first half that featured lots of scoring, that score wouldn’t stick for long.
Back-to-back free position goals in a 58-second span from SHU’s Kmiotek gave the Pioneers a 4-1 advantage before the Bulldogs (1-6, 1-2) ripped off three-straight scores to knot the game at 4-4.
Rookie Kelsea Gettings (Wallingford, Conn.) would score her second goal of the season with 17:01 to play, assisted by Sheridan, to close the gap to 4-2 before freshman Madeleine Pickett (Stratham, N.H.) hit the post on a free position shot with 9:55 to play. But in a heads up play, the frosh picked up the rebound and tried again, finding real estate behind SHU goalie Chelsea Wagner to bring the visiting Bulldogs within one and force the Pioneers to take a timeout. Just 19 seconds later, Sheridan would need just one chance to score her second free position tally of the afternoon, bringing the score back to a 4-4 draw.
But it would take Fuchs less than two minutes to respond and put the Pioneers back out in front, picking up her second point and first goal of the afternoon for a 5-4 advantage, assisted by Hauser. Hauser would continue the scoring by the home side with two more goals, both coming in the final minute of first-half action, to send the Bulldogs to the locker room with a 7-4 disadvantage.
Out of the halftime break, freshman defender Nicole Rettinger’s (Dix Hills, N.Y.) draw control win led to an unassisted goal from senior captain Alli Faiola (Billerica, Mass.) just 27 seconds in, closing the margin to just two goals.
The tally would start a back-and-forth scoring run that saw the teams traded scores twice. Kaitlin Rochler responded to Faiola’s goal exactly a minute later for her first score of the day. And when an unassisted goal from Sheridan brought the score to 8-6 just over three minutes later, it was quickly cancelled out by Kmiotek, who notched her own unaided tally 13 seconds after to restore Sacred Heart’s three-goal edge.
And when Jackie Pierce made it back-to-back goals for the Pioneers with 20:37 remaining in the contest, Christine Sutherland (Brewster, N.Y.) didn’t waste time getting even, scoring her first of the day 1:01 later.
But from there, it would be mostly Sacred Heart, as the home side outscored Bryant, 7-1, in the final 19 minutes. Kayla Manzi (Agawam, Mass.) recorded the Bulldogs final goal of the outing with 10:39 left on the clock.
Sophomore goalie Lauren Filippone (West Babylon, N.Y.) made 11 saves in the game while facing a Sacred Heart side that outshot the Bulldogs, 41-18. The Black and Gold edged the Pioneers in ground balls, 23-22, led by four from Rettinger.
Bryant returns home to host Columbia on Friday, March 26 at 3:00 p.m. at the Bryant Turf Complex.