PLYMOUTH, N.H. – Sophomore
Julia Donovan (Antrim, N.H.) scored and senior
Emily Santom (Litchfield, N.H.) scored four goals apiece and head coach
Becky Dale earned her first career win as Plymouth State University raced past the University of New England, 15-9, in the women's lacrosse season opener at Panther Field on Wednesday afternoon.
Plymouth State jumped all over the Nor'easters in the early going before coasting to the non-conference win. PSU raced out to a 7-1 lead in the first as Donovan scored three times in the opening 15 minutes. Santom added a pair of goals and senior
Olivia Croke (Norwell, Mass.), who led all players with six points in the game, chipped in a goal and an assist to force UNE to play from behind for the duration.
The Nor'easters tried to chip away at the deficit, pulling to within 11-7 late in the third quarter, but Croke's free position goal with 17 seconds left in the frame stopped the momentum and Santom scored twice to start the fourth quarter and erase any thoughts of a UNE comeback.
Dale gets a victory in her head coaching debut as PSU starts the season 1-0. UNE falls to 1-1 on the year.
The Basics:
- Plymouth State 15, UNE 9
- Plymouth State (1-0)
- UNE (1-1)
How it Happened:
- Plymouth State raced out to an early 3-0 lead in the opening 1:18 as Santom and Donovan combined to convert on three free position attempts. Santom opened the scoring 28 seconds into the contest, with Donovan pouring in the next two.
- UNE momentarily stopped the spurt with 12:48 left in the quarter, but the Panthers closed out the frame with a 4-0 surge. Santom and Donovan each scored again to stretch the lead to 5-1 with 11:51 remaining, and sophomore Jenna Stowell (Londonderry, N.H.) made it 6-1 just over two minutes later.
- Croke capped the first quarter scoring with a shot to the top right corner with 3:05 left as the Panthers held a 7-1 lead after one.
- The Nor'easters cut into the deficit in the second quarter, scoring 2:40 into the frame. Stowell countered for PSU, but the visitors added back-to-back goals to cut the lead to 8-4.
- Donovan buried her fourth of the day in the final minute as Plymouth State took a 9-4 lead into halftime.
- Croke opened the second half scoring and sophomore Maddie Hunt (Acton, Mass.) made it 11-4 five minutes into the third.
- UNE attempted to rally with three straight scores, but Croke closed the frame with a free position goal to give PSU a 12-7 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
- Santom tallied back-to-back goals to give the Panthers a 14-7 cushion early in the final stanza. The Nor'easters sandwiched a pair of goals around a score from senior Amelia Thomas (Hopkinton, N.H.) to account for the 15-9 final.
By the Numbers:
- Donovan finished with four goals and an assist, while Santom also notched four goals.
- Croke chipped in three goals and three assists for a game-high six points.
- Stowell scored twice and grabbed a game high nine draw controls.
- Senior Julia Mahoney (Stratford, Conn.) added eight draw controls.
- Thomas led all players with five ground balls and three caused turnovers.
- Freshman Margie Black (Longmeadow, Mass.) made nine saves to pick up the win in her first career game.
- The Panthers held a 34-26 edge in shots, including a 15-3 margin in the opening quarter.
- UNE went 20-of-24 on clears, while PSU was 18-of-24.
- PSU dominated the draws, winning 21-of-28, including 14-of-15 in the first half.
- Plymouth State moves to 6-1 all-time against the Nor'easters.
Up Next:
- The Panthers are back in action next Wednesday (Mar. 8) when St. Joseph's College of Maine comes to Panther Field for a 3:30 p.m. contest.
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