Fitchburg State Clipped by Framingham State, 7-5

Five different Falcons score in MASCAC setback

FITCHBURG, Mass. – The Fitchburg State University women's lacrosse team was in action this evening, dropping a 7-5 decision to the visiting Rams of Framingham State University in Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) action at Elliot Field.

The two teams traded markers to open the contest as junior Kimberly Foley found the back of the net for Framingham State, while senior Andrea Comeau scored for Fitchburg State to knot the score at 1-1.

Fitchburg State regained the lead (2-1) seconds later as senior Kayla Panek connected on her 16th scored on the year, but newcomer Grace Gamache answered back with her 21st tally to retie the contest (2-2) before freshman Nicole Pacheco put the Rams back on top with just under a minute left in the half to make the score 3-2 going into the intermission.

Following the break, the Falcons retied the contest (3-3) as junior Lia Crutchfield connected a free-position shot. The Rams responded with three straight markers from Gamache for the 6-3 advantage with ten minutes left in the contest.

The Green and Gold battled back with freshmen Rebecca Fisher and Tracy Long tallying scores, but Pacheco's second marker on day secured the win for the Rams, resulting in the 7-5 final.

Fitchburg State was led by Panek with two points on one goal and one assist as well as one ground ball, while junior Carrie Long added a game best four groundball, five caused turnovers and two draw controls. 

For Framingham State, Gamache led all scorers with four points on four goals to go along with three ground balls, four draw controls and one caused turnover, while Pacheco chipped in with two goals, two ground balls and one draw control.

Throughout the contest, Framingham State held a 24-14 advantage in shots, while also holding a 23-19 margin in ground balls. In goal, sophomore Marguerite Belcher stopped 16 shots for the Falcons in the complete game effort, while counterpart Indigo Fox Tree-McGrath made eight saves for the Rams in 60 minutes of work.

Fitchburg State (6-6, 1-2 MASCAC) returns to action Tuesday as it hosts the Vikings of Salem State for a contest starting at 7 p.m. Framingham State (7-5, 2-1 MASCAC) will host Westfield State on Tuesday at 6 p.m.