Women's Lacrosse | 4/24/2024 6:28:00 PM
UTICA, NY - With its 16-4 win over the visiting Russell Sage College Gators on Wednesday, the Utica University (12-3, 4-1 Empire 8) women's lacrosse team secured the No. 2 seed in the upcoming Empire 8 Conference Tournament.
The Pioneers will host the third-seeded team (TBD) in the conference semifinals on Wednesday, May 1 from Charles A. Gaetano Stadium. It will mark the second time in program history that Utica will host an Empire 8 postseason contest (2021).
Samantha DeCondo paced the Pioneer attack with a season high five goals and one assist. Alyssa Drell joined the 100 point club after scoring four goals in the game to reach the centennial mark. Grace Stuhlman and Kerry Carr scored two goals each while Maria Stuhlman, Courtney Fish, and Jordan Kowalski rounded out the scoring with one each.
Alyssa Pisano, Maria Stuhlman and Kerry Carr finished tied for the team lead with two assists a piece. Grace Stuhlman and Aana Blaszka each collected a team high four ground balls while Stuhlman also led the Pioneers with 10 draw controls. Daniela Muscari caused three turnovers in the win followed by Mara Cunningham and DeCondo each having two. In goal, Makayla Purdy earned her 11th victory of the year after making five saves with just four goals allowed.
The Pioneers got off to a quick start with four goals over the first seven minutes of the first quarter. Maria Stuhlman and Grace Stuhlman went back-to-back in the opening minutes before DeCondo (8:56) and Carr (8:19) tallied goals less than 40 seconds apart.
Sage notched its first goal with 6:52 to play in the first to make it 4-1 before the Pioneers went on a 7-0 run that lasted until the final minute of the first half. In fact, the Gators did not score for over 20 minutes of game time until they scored with 35 seconds left to go in the second.
During the Pioneers' run, Drell scored four straight, two over which coming while a player down, over the span of four minutes. DeCondo (down), Kowalski and G. Stuhlman each had one as well.
Utica kept Sage off the board throughout the entire third quarter and scored three more times to enter the final 15 minutes of action ahead 14-2. DeCondo and Fish each scored midway through the fourth while Sage's final two goals came with 1:23 and three seconds left to play.
Utica will hit the road for its regular season finale at 1 p.m. on Saturday against Alfred University.
ABOUT THE EMPIRE 8 CONFERENCE
The members of the Empire 8 Conference are committed first and foremost to the pursuit of academic excellence and the league is regarded as an outstanding NCAA Division III conference. The membership has distinguished itself among its peer group for its quality institutions, spirited and sportsmanlike competition, outstanding services and highly ethical policies and practices. Its commitment to serve the educational needs of its student-athletes is the hallmark of the E8. For more on the Empire 8 visit
www.empire8.com.
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