ALFRED, N.Y. (April 2, 2011) – Senior Leah Wasserman had seven points while junior Michelle Buonacuore and sophomore Spencer Waybright notched six points apiece as the No. 9 Stevens Institute of Technology women’s lacrosse team rolled to a 20-3 Empire 8 win over Alfred University on Saturday afternoon at Merrill Field in Alfred, N.Y. With the win, Stevens improves to 2-0 in the Empire 8 and 7-2 overall.
Freshman Melanie Welcome earned the win in goal for Stevens, making four saves in the first half. Freshman Sarah Prall played the second half for the Ducks but did not face a single shot.
Stevens ended the game with a 42-10 advantage in shots (15-0 in the second half) and won the ground ball battle, 22-14. The Ducks won 17-of-24 draws but went 0-for-8 on free-position attempts.
Sophomore Ali Garcia (Salt Lake City, Utah) led the Saxons (0-5 overall, 0-2 Empire 8) with two goals, a ground ball and a draw control, while junior goalie Kate Baughman (Rush, N.Y.) made 10 saves in a losing effort.
The two teams played the first 9:34 of the first half to a 1-1 score before the Ducks erupted on a 9-0 run over a span of 8:54 to open up a 10-1 lead and put the game out of reach. Wasserman started the run thanks to an assist from senior midfielder Christine Smith and 1:32 later, junior Jenna Scheibling put the Ducks on top 3-1. Waybright and Wasserman notched markers 16 seconds apart to make it 5-1, and Waybright tallied two-straight times thanks to Wasserman assists to up the advantage to six (7-1) with 12:19 left in the first. Senior Pamela Loria scored unassisted to make it 8-1 Ducks, and freshman Gabby Gordon put in the first goal of her career with 10:46 left in the half. Scheibling’s second goal of the half put a cap on the Stevens run as Gordon and Loria were able to tally between Garcia’s two goals to make it a 12-3 game at intermission.
Waybright and Wasserman scored the first two goals of the second half before Buonacuore went on an assist rampage, handing out helpers on the Ducks’ final four scores. Senior Claire Eudy, Smith, junior Ashley Carey, and sophomore Christine Eicher all netted goals thanks to feeds from Buonacuore with Eudy’s, Carey’s, and Eicher’s being the first of the season.
Carey had three ground balls, two draw controls, and two caused turnovers to pace the Stevens defense, while sophomore Teegan Kelly had a game-high four draw controls. Sophomore Joey Galligan added two ground balls and three draw controls, while Eudy added a ground ball and draw control to her one goal. Gordon finished with two markers and a draw control, and Loria scored twice as well. Buonacuore had a goal and five assists along with a game-high five ground balls, and Wasserman had seven points (four goals, three assists) and two ground balls. Waybright had six points (four goals, two assists), three draw controls, and a ground ball, and Smith totaled two goals, two assists, three draw controls and a ground ball. Scheibling rang the bell twice, handed out one assist and controlled one draw.