Fitchburg State Holds Off Rivier, 10-6
| Final | 1 | 2 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Fitchburg St. (3-4, 0-0) | 6 | 4 | 10 |
|
Rivier (1-5, 0-0) | 3 | 3 | 6 |
Long and Laferriere combine for ten points for Falcons in non-conference victory
NASHUA, N.H. – Senior Ali Laferriere and junior Carrie Long combined for ten points as the Fitchburg State women's lacrosse team defeated the Raiders of Rivier University, 10-6 in non-conference action this evening at Raider Field.
The Falcons were led by Laferriere with a game-best five points on two scores and three assists as well as four ground balls, three ground balls and one caused turnover, while Long chipped in with five points on a game-leading four goals and one helper to go along with five ground balls, three caused draw controls and one caused turnover.
For Rivier, freshman Alyssa Ciszek tallied a team-leading three points on three marker with three ground balls and two draw controls, while senior Jane Farrell added two points on one goal and one assists as well as a game-best six ground balls and one caused turnover.
Fitchburg State opened the contest on a 3-0 run as freshman Tracy Long, sophomore Sarah Mallahan and C. Long registered goals for the Green and Gold before the Raiders responded with a pair of markers by Ciszek and a score from newcomer Sally Kennedy to knot the score at 3-3.
The Falcons answered back with three consecutive scores. C. Long ignited the spark for Fitchburg State with back-to-back scores, while Laferriere buried a shot into the back of the net with 48 seconds remaining in the half to make the score 6-3 after 30 minutes of play.
Following the break, Rivier battled back, retying the contest (6-6) seven minutes into the frame as Farrell, Ciszek and freshman Amanda Barton found the back of the net for the hosts.
Fitchburg State regained the lead with just under 14 minutes left in the contest when senior Kayla Panek connected on a free-position shot before the Falcons closed out the game with marker by T. Long, Laferriere and C. Long, resulting in the 10-6 final.
Throughout the game, Fitchburg State held a 27-17 margin in shots, while Rivier finished with a narrow 34-30 advantage in ground balls. In net, sophomore Marguerite Belcher stopped seven shots for the Falcons in the complete game effort, while counterpart Courtney Laperrier made 12 saves for the Raiders in 60 minutes of work.
Fitchburg State (3-4, 0-0 MASCAC) returns to action on Saturday as it hosts the Owls of Westfield State University at Becker College for a contest starting at 5 p.m. Rivier (1-5, 0-1 GNAC) will host the Bison of Nichols College on Thursday at 6 p.m.