STRONG SECOND HALF GIVES SAINTS

16-12 VICTORY OVER CLARKSON

Apr. 15: A 5-0 run in the second half gave the St. Lawrence University women’s lacrosse team the confidence they needed to overcome a 7-6 halftime deficit to defeat North Country rival and Liberty League opponent Clarkson University 16-12 Tuesday afternoon on Clarkson Field.

The Scarlet and Brown pick up their ninth win of the season, improving to a 9-4 record overall and an even 3-3 Liberty League record heading into their last two games of the regular season this weekend with conference opponents Rensselaer and Vassar. Clarkson falls to 2-8 and 1-5 in the league with the loss.

Senior co-captain Alanna Waters ( Darien, CT/Taft) tallied a career-high six assists, tying the school record for the third time this season, while also scoring two goals for an eight-point game to lead the Saints against the Golden Knights. The attack currently stands at 71 points so far in her 2008 campaign, making her only the sixth Saint to reach more than 70 points in a season in the past two decades.

Others scoring for St. Lawrence included rookie Kaitlyn Fahsel ( Watertown, NY/South Jefferson), who tallied three goals, including the game-winner, and an assist. Junior Amanda Forbes ( Glens Falls, NY/ Glens Falls) had four goals, while first-year Kim Morse had three. Senior co-captain Liz Skinner (Liverpool, NY/Liverpool), sophomores Lexi Wisnowski (Middlebury, VT/Middlebury Union) and Katrina Knickerbocker (Clinton Corners, NY/The Gunnery), as well as first-year Kelsey Redpath (Norwich, VT/Hanover) each scored a goal to add to the Saints’ efforts.

The well-contested first period included three lead changes and four ties, with neither team earning more than a two goal lead. The Saints jumped out to an early 2-0 lead after a goal from both Forbes and Redpath just 1:30 into the contest, but Clarkson’s Alicia Chace and Kimberly Loucks scored two to tie things up with 23:12 remaining in the half.

Morse tallied her first of the game just a minute later, while Loucks and teammate Emily Bojarski each added another for the Golden Knights to make the score 4-3, giving Clarkson their first lead of the game with 13:38 to go.

A 3-0 Saints’ run with goals from Forbes, Waters, and Skinner in the next five and a half minutes gave St. Lawrence momentum and a 6-4 edge, while giving Clarkson all the more reason to storm back on their home field. The Golden Knights scored three unanswered goals in the final six minutes to close out the half with a 7-6 advantage.

Wisnowski and Forbes opened up the second with two unassisted goals to push the visiting squad back into the lead, but a St. Lawrence foul sent Golden Knight Brittnie Carroll to the eight-meter, which she tucked in just past Saints’ first-year goalie Anna Marchand to tie the game at 8-8 with 27:41 to go in the contest.

Waters added her second goal while Morse tallied two more to give the Saints an 11-8 advantage, their biggest lead of the game, while Loucks was successful from the eight-meter to get within two of the Scarlet and Brown, bringing the score to 11-9 with 17:15 remaining.

The momentum on Clarkson Field changed after Fahsel won the draw control following Clarkson’s goal and stormed down the field to drive the ball into the net past Golden Knight goalie Meagan Emlaw, sparking a 5-0 St. Lawrence run that included two more from the North Country native, including the eventual game-winner, as well as a goal from Knickerbocker and Forbes to give the visiting team a comfortable 16-9 lead. A last minute effort on Clarkson’s part included three goals in the last 6:17 of the contest, but it wasn’t enough to close the gap, giving St. Lawrence the crucial 16-12 victory.

“Our second half was big for us on both ends of the field,” said Saints’ Head Coach Jodi Canfield. “Offensively, we really started to click. Our transitions improved and were nearly flawless, which helped lead to some fast-break goals.”

“Defensively, we started creating turnovers all over the field, which was great as far as keeping possession. We sealed up some of the holes in front of Anna that were somewhat problematic for us in the first. We didn’t completely shut down some of their key players, but definitely made it more difficult to run their offense.”

St. Lawrence out shot their neighbors 33-27 and picked up 23 groundballs, compared to the Golden Knights’ 16. Clarkson held a 16-14 advantage in draw controls, and made two of their six free position shots, while the Saints were unable to cash in on either of their two shots from the eight-meter.

The Saints will host Rensselaer in Liberty League action this Friday, April 18 on North Country Field, with the game scheduled to begin at 4:00pm.