SYRACUSE, N.Y. — In a highly-anticipated, top-five matchup, the No. 4 Stony Brook women's lacrosse team gave the reigning national finalists all they could handle, but No. 3 Syracuse held on for a 12-11 victory at the Carrier Dome on Sunday afternoon.
Ellie Masera flew on to the national scene in her fourth collegiate start, scoring four goals to lead all players in the contest.
Erin MacQuarrie matched Masera's point total, racking up four assists to aid the Seawolves attack.
Masera scored the first two goals for Stony Brook, giving the Seawolves 1-0 and 2-1 leads early in the contest. Syracuse responded with a four-goal run to go up 5-2 but the Seawolves came right back, scoring three of the final four tallies of the half to make it a 6-5 scoreline heading into the break.
After the hosts took a multi-goal lead again in the second half at 8-6,
Joe Spallina's club flew into the lead with a three-goal run to go up 9-8. MacQuarrie assisted on the first two tallies, with
Kailyn Hart finding
Charlotte Verhulst to put the visitors ahead with 8:17 to go in the third.
Syracuse would score the next four, amassing a three-goal advantage that would be one too many as Stony Brook, who cut it to one in the fourth, but could not find the tying goal in the final 5:37.
STATS AND NOTES
- Masera's four goals are a new career-high and mark her third career hat trick.
- She had five draw controls, matching the second-highest output of her career.
- MacQuarrie's helpers were the first of her Seawolves career.
- Kailyn Hart also set a new career-high in that department, dishing three assists.
- Along with her goal, Verhulst finished with a career-high seven draw controls.
- Charlie Campbell stood tall in the cage all day, totaling 12 saves for the Seawolves.
QUOTES FROM THE SEAWOLVES
"This was a heartbreaker. The game lived up to its billing, with two heavyweights going toe-to-toe. Our kids played their hearts out and I am proud of them. We did some first-game things but for the most part, rose to the occasion. We took too many cards and need to be more disciplined and better in that area. That's on me because you can't beat a great team playing down a man for 12 minutes, almost one full quarter. That said, our goalie and defense were outstanding against the nation's top offense. Offensively, we did some great things, with nine of our 11 goals assisted, and some uncharacteristic things we will clean up. The biggest shocker to me was looking at the stats postgame and seeing we weren't awarded a single free-position shot the entire game, a very interesting stat. I'm fired up to get home for our home opener in front of the best fans in the game." - head coach
Joe Spallina.
UP NEXT
The Seawolves open their 2022 home slate on Sunday afternoon, hosting Ivy League foe Dartmouth for a Noon first draw at LaValle Stadium.
Get your tickets now to see the nationally-ranked Seawolves in action at LaValle Stadium!
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