Falcons Clipped By Pilgrims In Non-Conference Action

Johnson and Gilman net hat tricks for Green and Gold

Henniker, N.H. - The Fitchburg State women's lacrosse team suffered a tough 10-9 setback to the Pilgrims of New England College this afternoon in non-conference action from the Don Melander Field.

The Basics

Score: Fitchburg State 9, New England College 10

Records: Fitchburg State (2-3) | New England College (1-1)

How It Happened

Fitchburg State opened the scoring as freshman Abaigeal Gilman (Clinton, Mass) connected on her fifth goal of the season for the 1-0 lead. New England College grabbed the 2-1 edge as senior Lauren Rich (Plaistow, N.H.) and sophomore Nathalie Antigua (North Brunswick, N.J.) netted scores.

The Green and Gold knotted the score at 2-2 with junior Brooke Johnson (Billerica, Mass.) tallied her fourth of the year. The Pilgrims would take a 4-2 margin into the break however with graduate student Alexandria Safford (Burnt Hills, N.Y.) finding the back of the net twice over a five minute span.

Following the intermission, Fitchburg State regained the lead (6-4) going on 4-0 run as Gilman notched a pair of goals, while freshman Nicole Orlowski (Ellington, Conn.) and Johnson added one score each.

The Pilgrims retied the contest 7-7 on markers from newcomer Kaiya Rodriquez (Winthrop, Mass.) and Antiqua before the Green and Gold took a 9-7 edge as Johnson and Orlowski potted markers. The hosts battled back though, scoring the final three goals with Rich netting back-to-back scores, while senior Haley Barnacz (Hamilton, N.J.) secured the victory for New England College with the eventually game winner with just under five minutes left in the contest, resulting in the 10-9 final.

Inside the Numbers

• Fifth meeting between the two teams in lacrosse with the Falcons 2-3 all-time vs. the Pilgrims
• Gilman paced the Falcons with three goals, four ground balls and two draw controls
• Freshman Celia Dunmore (Boston, Mass.) added two ground balls and a pair of caused turnovers
• For the Pilgrims, Rich finished with three goals, seven ground balls, three draw controls and three caused turnovers
• Antigua chipped in with two goals, one assist, three ground balls, one draw control and one caused turnover
• Junior Francesca Reyes (Malden, Mass.) stopped seven shots for the Falcons
• Sophomore Carleigh Knotts (Dover, Del.) stopped 13 shots for New England College

Up Next

Falcons return to action next Wednesday, March 16th, when they travel to Gordon College to take on the Fighting Scots for a non-conference matchup, starting at 4:00 PM.