Bulldogs down Seahawks, 12-8, Sunday

BLOOM'S FIVE-POINT AFTERNOON LEADS BRYANT TO 12-8 VICTORY AT WAGNER SUNDAY

SMITHFIELD, R.I. -- Paced by a five-point day from junior Haley Bloom (Hauppauge, N.Y.), the Bryant University women's lacrosse team picked up its second-straight victory, defeating Wagner, 12-8, Sunday afternoon in Staten Island, N.Y.

Junior Kimberley Sniffen (Redding, Conn.) got things started in the first half, putting Bryant (8-6, 5-2 Northeast Conference) up early, 1-0, just over five minutes into the contest. Nearly a minute later, Kimmy Tumolo evened the score for the Seahawks (5-11, 1-7 NEC), knotting things up, 1-1, at the 23:59 mark.

The Bulldogs went on to score the next three markers to regain the advantage, 4-1, first on a Shannon Burns (Mount Sinai, N.Y.) free position shot, followed by goals from Katherine Keckeisen (Danbury, Conn.) at the 18:11 mark and Lisa Vendel (Sandy Hook, Conn.) at 14:23.

Over the next three minutes, each team traded scores, first Gretchen Fay put home her lone goal of the afternoon at 14:26, just before Bloom nailed home her first score of the contest off a pass from Keckeisen at 11:58.

Wagner scored three-straight goals in the final 10 minutes of the half to even the score, 5-5, until Bloom put Bryant up, 6-5, heading into the half off a free position shot with just nine seconds remaining on the clock.

In the second frame, Vendel extended the Bulldog advantage with her second score of the game before Jessica Mills brought Wagner back within a single goal with just over 23 minutes left in the contest.

Leading by just one, the Black and Gold took control, netting three goals in less than six minutes to open up their largest lead of the afternoon, 10-6, with just under 14 minutes to play.

Wagner's Stephanie Peterson score a pair, but it was not enough as Keckeisen and Sniffen added two more tallies in the final five minutes, pushing the Bryant lead back to four goals, 12-8.

Junior Brianna Watt (Babylon, N.Y.) made three saves between the pipes for the Bulldogs, while Shannon Sweeney and Katie Ferraro combined for six saves for Wagner.

The Bulldogs will head home for the final weekend of Northeast Conference regular season action, hosting Monmouth on Friday (7 p.m.) and Mount St. Mary's on Sunday (1 p.m.) as they look to earn their first-ever berth to the NEC Tournament.

For all the latest news on the Bryant University women's lacrosse team, visit BryantBulldogs.com.