SFU Closes Out Home Slate in 19-3 Loss to Long Island
Loretto, Pa. – The Saint Francis women’s lacrosse team was ousted by the Long Island Blackbirds, dropping a 19-3 decision on a cold, gray Sunday morning in the Red Flash’s final home game of the season.
The Red Flash took 12 shots, the second most all year, with nine attempts finding the six by six objective.
Freshman blue-chipper Meg Lamarche (Webster, N.Y./Webster Thomas), tied for the most goals for SFU with 14, slotted two tallies in the Northeast Conference contest. The Rochester area native challenged LIU keeper Kimberly Bostwick three times as well as accounting for two ground balls. Lamarche’s second tally at 17:48 of the second half came on a Heather Tiernan (Marlton, N.J./Cherokee) assist. The playmaking pass counted for the freshman midfielder’s first career assist and point for the Red Flash. Tiernan also recorded one shot on cage.
SFU’s first goal came from the cross of junior workhorse Sarah Wheeler (Canton, Conn./Canton). Wheeler’s goal came in the fashion on one of SFU’s 10 successful clears. The transition started on an open ground ball in SFU’s own zone from senior Kati Kenyon (Glenmont, N.Y./Niskayuna) who then discovered a furiously flanking Wheeler down the left side of the field. Wheeler buzzed by two Blackbird defenders, sprinted the ball down to the low left post, cut back, and burned Bostwick top-right shelf. Wheeler’s second goal of the season came just minutes after she took a hard-knock to the face, causing her to take a break from the action. Wheeler balanced out her day with one ground ball.
Veteran junior Meghan Crosby (Cincinnati, Ohio/Sycamore) scampered away with four draw controls in the match to lead all participants. SFU’s leader in draws, shot percentage, shots on goal and caused turnovers as well tied for most goals affixed two more shots, one on cage, and two ground balls to her collective output.
Sophomore Lauren Roth (Dover, Pa./Spring Grove) fired three rocks on target, the most attempts the attacker’s had all season. Roth also picked up a loose ball and went 0-1 on free position shots.
In the spirit of senior day at DeGol Field, SFU’s only senior, Kati Kenyon, registered two shots on cage in Sunday’s affair. In addition to the graduating senior’s highest output of shots all year, the hard-worker came up with two ground balls. Junior defenders Corri Smeak (Frederick, Md./St. John’s) and Caitlin Espy (Moon, Pa./Moon Area) wrangled up ground ball each while Smeak also jarred two LIU possessions loose.
Freshman netminder Danielle Pokusa (Cinnaminson, N.J./Cinnaminson) created the other turnover for Saint Francis not counting a gallant effort in net. Pokusa obstructed 13 of 30 Blackbird attempts, many of acrobatic nature. Junior goalkeeper Katie Godshall (King of Prussia, Pa./Upper Merion) relived the freshman of her duties with six minutes remaining, surrendering just two goals.
Long Island opened the lid on the first of their seven unanswered goals at 28:32 of the first period, but Wheeler’s streaking goal changed the circle to a stick on SFU’s side of the board with 4:28 left. Sam Fischbeck and Allison Funk each added another marker before the half, closing out the first session 9-1 in favor of the Blackbirds.
Lamarche put the brakes on LIU’s three goal kickoff of the second half after peeling all the way down off of a ground ball around the half line, broke through two defenders, one of which who slipped due to the dismal conditions, and buried a right-handed rip stick side against Bostwick at 22:14. Two more counters from the opposing side occurred in between Lamarche’s two second stanza tallies. At 17:48, Lamarche took control of a perfect pass from Tiernan and deposited Saint Francis’ third and final attack of the game. Five more Blackbird blasts found their way past Pokusa and Godshall, sealing the match 19-3.
DeGol Field will not be privy to any competition until football season as the SFU lacrosse team (0-13, 0-7) closed out their home agenda Sunday morning. Saint Francis had one game left on the billet against NEC antagonist Robert Morris on Sunday, April 20 at 12pm.