Three Bulldogs register hat tricks in 17-12 victory over Red Flash, Friday afternoon

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – The Bryant University women's lacrosse team extended its winning streak to seven games overall and three to begin Northeast Conference play in a high-scoring affair Friday afternoon, as it defeated Saint Francis University 17-12 in Smithfield.  

The Bulldogs (9-3, 3-0 NEC) were paced by five points on four goals and an assist from senior attack Nicole Britton (Monmouth Beach, N.J.) and a four-goal effort from freshman mid Jess DeMeo (Mount Sinai, N.Y.). Sophomore attack Catlin Brown (San Diego, Calif.) caged two and dished a pair of fancy assists. Freshman midfielder Lauren Britton (Monmouth Beach, N.J.) tallied three points on two scores and a helper, junior mid Ali Cardinal (Schenectady, N.Y.) statted the same point total on a goal and two assists. Freshman middie Emma Ahlrichs (Zionsville, Ind.) scored a career-high three goals and junior defender Shannon Sullivan (Farmingdale, N.Y.) added a goal and an assist in the win.

The Red Flash (4-8, 1-2) were led by a pair of hat tricks of their own, courtesy of Sarah Mahon and Katie Schaaf. Mahon added an assist to lead the squad with four points, as Jessica Mazzur registered two goals and an assist and Lindsey Ingram netted a pair of shots.

Heather McKee made seven saves in the loss while playing the full 60 minutes. Sophomore netminders Samantha Santeramo (Wantagh, N.Y.) and Daja Andrews (Lumberton, N.J.) split the two halves, as Santeramo improved to 8-1 on the year thanks to a three-save first half that she exited with her team leading 9-4.   

It was a defensive struggle for the first 10 minutes of action with only two attempts finding the back of the net. Schaaf got the Red Flash on the board five minutes into the game, and the Bulldogs did not answer until the 20:26 mark of the opening frame. Nicole Britton made a spin move after beginning her approach to cage from behind the crease, and she fired a low shot into the net. She tacked on another goal just one minute later after a quick pass from Cardinal to make it 2-1.

Sullivan completed a 3-0 Bryant run in the span of just two minutes to make it 3-1 with 18:27 to play. Sydney Rowan got the visitors back on the scoreboard just 50 seconds later, but DeMeo and Ahlrichs answered to extend the host lead to 5-2. Mahon converted a free-position attempt and Mazzur caged her first of the game with 12:47 to play in the half to get the Red Flash to within just one, 5-4.

The Bulldogs clamped down defensively and created some separation to close out the half with a 4-0 run over the final 11 minutes that was ignited and capped off by Lauren Britton goals, making it 9-4.

The Bryant run extended to five-straight goals and ultimately became a 7-1 stretch after consecutive DeMeo goals, making it 12-5 with 16:55 to play in the second half.

The Bulldog lead remained comfortable, not elevating to more than seven goals but not dipping below five over the ensuing 10:53. Trailing, 14-7, Saint Francis strung together three-straight goals, two being free-position scores from Ingram and Mazzur, cutting the deficit to 14-10 at the 7:49 mark.

The Bulldogs could have easily allowed the Red Flash to inch closer, as a total of 22 fouls were whistled on Black and Gold defenders in the second half alone. SFU had six free-position attempts in the second stanza and converted five of them, and it was also dominant on the draw controls, winning 14 to Bryant's three.

Despite the glaring difference in time of possession in the second half and the number of chances that the Red Flash seemingly had, the Bulldogs continued to play sound defense in the second half. Ahlrichs, Nicole Britton and Brown scored three of the next four goals of the game to give Bryant the insurance goals it needed, as the Red Flash could not catch up in what ended up being the sixth-highest scoring game that the Black and Gold have played in since joining the DI ranks.

The Bulldogs were squeaked out in the shot category, 28-25, but allowed just 12 goals even with the disparity in draws and fouls thanks to 11 caused turnovers and going 20-for-21 on the clear. The Red Flash went just 10-for-17 on their clear attempts, primarily because of the Bryant pressure. The hosts edged the Red Flash, 8-6, on the draw in the first half, but were outdone in the second, 14-3, as Mazzur, Holly Lawrence and Alex Anton combined for 14 wins. But Nicole Britton matched both Lawrence and Anton with five draw controls of her own, and in doing so she became Bryant's all-time leader in career draws, as she now has 150.

The Bulldogs are back in action in just two days from now on Sunday at 12:00 p.m. when they host Robert Morris.