The Oswego State women’s lacrosse team jumped out to a six-goal halftime lead and withstood a late rally by SUNY New Paltz to hold off the Hawks, 16-14, Tuesday at Laker Field.
Junior attacker Rachael Raffa and senior midfielder Bri Borrow scored four goals each and junior attacker Erin Cummings added two goals and two assists to give the Lakers their fourth win in five games.
The Lakers (6-4 overall, 2-3 SUNYAC) jumped out to an early two-goal lead with goals by Cummings and Borrow less than five minutes into the game. Trailing 3-1 after Raffa’s first goal of the game, the Hawks scored three unanswered goals to take the lead with just under 16 minutes remaining in the first half. Oswego State countered with a five-goal run to take an 8-4 lead behind goals from Raffa, Cummings, Borrow and junior attacker Kelly Collins.
The Hawks’ Bridgitte Hooker ended Oswego State’s run with a free-position shot goal at 18:28 of the first half. Hooker led the Hawks offense with six goals, including four in the second half.
The Lakers took their largest lead of the game with 2:07 remaining in the second half when junior attacker Kristen Darcy corralled a pass from Cummings and beat New Paltz goalie Stefanie Mignone for an 11-5 halftime lead.
The six-goal lead was quickly cut in half with goals by Hooker, Brittany Bennett and Juli Rehain in the opening seven minutes of the second half.
Oswego State received unassisted goals by sophomore midfielder Michelle Ruskey and Borrow to increase the lead back to five, but Hooker responded for the Hawks (6-7 overall, 0-5 SUNYAC) with her fourth goal of the game to cut the lead to 13-9.
Borrow scored her second straight goal for the Lakers two minutes later, but her goal would be the last for Oswego State for the next 11 minutes. During the scoring drought for the Lakers, New Paltz cut the lead to three on goals by Rashidat Soetan and Hooker, her fifth goal of the game.
Freshman midfielder/attacker Corinne Marsh ended the scoring drought for the Lakers with a free-position shot goal with 4:32 remaining in regulation to take a 15-11 lead. Both teams traded goals in the final minutes, capped off by Juli Rehain’s inconsequential goal for the Hawks with three seconds remaining.
Oswego State sophomore goalie Ashlee Engel made nine saves to earn the win in net for the Lakers. Mignone finished with 11 saves in a losing effort for the Hawks.
The game against New Paltz was a tale of two halves for the Lakers. Oswego State outplayed the Red Dragons in every aspect of the game in the first half. The Lakers outshot New Paltz 20-12 and took 12 of 17 draws in the first half. Oswego State set up eight free-position shots, capitalizing on three attempts. Borrow, Raffa and Collins scored on free-position shots in the first half for the Lakers.
The momentum shifted in the second half, as the Hawks defense held the Lakers to five goals. The Lakers were outshot 18-10 and lost the ground ball battle 16-8 in the second half. The Hawks controlled the tempo of the second half, winning eight of 14 draws. Neither team had many free-position shot attempts, as the Lakers went 0-for-2 and the Hawks went 0-for-3.
The Hawks’ leading scorer Samantha DelGaudio netted three goals and added two assists for a five-point game, but her performance was overshadowed by Hooker’s seven-point game. DelGaudio currently has 51 points on 28 goals and 23 assists in 13 games this season. Hooker is fourth on the team in scoring with 30 points on 23 goals and seven assists.
The Lakers continue conference play when they host SUNY Oneonta on Friday, April 22, at Laker Field.
