Fitchburg State Lances Worcester State, 14-11

Swan and Brown lead Falcons to second NEWLA victory of the season

WORCESTER, Mass. (April 17, 2010) – The Fitchburg State women’s lacrosse team collected its second consecutive victory, downing Worcester State College, 14-11 in New England Women’s Lacrosse Alliance (NEWLA) action this afternoon.

ABBIE BROWN

Senior Emily Swan (Franklin, Mass./Franklin) continued to light up the net, leading Fitchburg State with a game-best five goals with one assist while sophomore Amanda Burns (Weymouth, Mass./Weymouth) added three markers and a pair of helpers. Classmate Kelly Finamore (Weymouth, Mass./Weymouth) chipped in with two goals, one assist and a team-high nine ground balls, while junior Kaitlyn Kelly (Pepperell, Mass./North Middlesex) capped the Falcons scoring with two tallies.

The opening stanza saw both teams score in bunches as Worcester State quickly jumped out to a 3-1 advantage, but Fitchburg State rallied back, rattling off three consecutive goals at 13:02 for a 4-3 lead. Finamore sparked the Falcons surge with her 12th marker of the season at the 17:23 mark, while Swans and Burns produced a two goal outburst over just a two minute span.

The Lancers offense responded over the next seven minutes of play, posting a trio of scores to grab a 6-4 edge, but the Falcons had the final answer of the period, scoring three consecutive goals to close out the frame with a 7-6 lead. Sophomore Jill Shaner (Arlington, Mass./Arlington) and Swan  brought the game to a 6-6 deadlock with back-to-back goals, while K. Kelley added her first goal of the game with just one second remaining in the period.

In the second half, Fitchburg State came out firing, exploding for four goals in just a 1:44 span. Swan ignited the scoring fury with a pair of goals, while Burns and freshman Jamie Kelley (Pepperell, Mass./North Middlesex) turned in single scores.

As Fitchburg State led 11-6 at 26:03, Worcester State battled back, scoring four out of the five next goals to trim its deficit to only two (12-10). The Falcons held off the late surge by the Lancers however, using possession offense down the stretch to seal their seventh victory of the season.

The Falcons finished with a commanding 35-27 advantage in shots and 43-45 advantage in groundballs. In net, freshman Abbie Brown (Westwood, Mass./Westwood) earned the victory for Fitchburg State, totaling 12 saves and five ground balls, while sophomore Haley Erickson (Saugus, Mass./Saugus) stopped 12 shots between the pipes for Worcester.

Fitchburg State (7-5, 2-2 NEWLA) is back in action on Tuesday as it hosts Rivier College at 7 p.m. Worcester State (5-4, 3-2 NEWLA) will travel to Westfield State next Saturday at 5 p.m.

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Fitchburg State 14, Worcester State 11