NO. ANDOVER, Mass. – Junior Elizabeth Sears (Danvers, Mass.) and freshman Canada Stewart (Derry, N.H.) each recorded a goal and an assist, but the Saint Anselm College field hockey team dropped a 4-2 decision against eighth-ranked Merrimack College on Sunday afternoon at Martone-Mejail Field.

The Hawks drop to 3-6 on the season, including 1-1 in Northeast-10 play, while the Warriors improve to 7-1 and a perfect 2-0 in the conference.

Merrimack raced out to a 1-0 lead late in the 10^th minute when Jessica Otis notched an unassisted score as she slapped a shot past senior goalkeeper Megan Sullivan (Braintree, Mass.).

Saint Anselm answered just 1:14 later as Sears fed Stewart, who put a shot into the back of the cage to knot the game at one apiece.

The Hawks wasted no time grabbing the lead when late in the 13^th minute, Stewart returned the favor as she set up Sears, who beat Merrimack goalkeeper Kerri Bergquist to make it 2-1.

The Warriors tied the game early in the 18^th minute when 2011 Northeast-10 Player of the Year, April Daugherty, received a feed from Abbey Stacey and found the back of the cage to make it 2-2.

The scoring continued when Christine Zubkus took a shot from inside the circle that was deflected into the cage by Candace Wald to stake Merrimack to a 3-2 lead at the 22:13 mark.

The game stayed that way into the second half when Otis potted her second of the game in the 52^nd minute to give the Warriors a cushion they would hold on to.

Sullivan made 15 saves, while Berguist stopped four shots.

Merrimack outshot Saint Anselm 52-13, including 24-4 in the second half. The Warriors also held a 16-6 advantage in penalty corners, including 10-3 in the opening stanza.

The Hawks return to action Wednesday, Sept. 26 at 7 p.m. when they travel to take on nationally-ranked UMass Lowell. The next home game for the Hawks is Saturday, Sept. 29 at 1 p.m. when they play host to Assumption College at Grappone Stadium. Stay up-to-date with the latest news, including game previews and recaps, directly from the Saint Anselm College athletic department by friending us on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/STAHawks) and following us on Twitter (http://www.twitter.com/STAHawks).