MANCHESTER, N.H. – Caitlin Villareal and Erica Mattila combined for nine goals and the Saint Anselm College women's lacrosse team locked down Franklin Pierce in a 14-11 victory on Saturday afternoon at Grappone Stadium.
Box Score
Villareal tallied five goals and one assist for her third game this season with at least five goals and Mattila scored four goals for the second time this year for Saint Anselm (3-2, 2-2 NE-10). The win improved the Hawks to 8-1 all-time at home against Franklin Pierce (4-2, 1-2 NE-10).
Mattila scored all four of her goals in a high-scoring first half that saw the two teams combine for 19 goals. Franklin Pierce led 5-3 after the first 10 minutes but Saint Anselm tied it at 5-5 on goals by Villareal and Michelle Kudlate.
The Ravens took a 7-5 advantage on back-to-back goals from Caitlin Sweeney and Nicole Dale only for the Hawks to rattle off four goals in 5:59 for a 9-7 lead. Saint Anselm led 10-9 at the break thanks to an Emma Palumbo goal with five seconds remaining in the half.
Franklin Pierce started the scoring in the second half through Nicole Beliveau at 26:44 but the Hawks held the visitors scoreless until the 8:08 mark. In the meantime, Saint Anselm scored four-straight goals, two from Villareal, one from Erin Marshall and one from Kudlate, to claim a 14-10 lead.
Marshall pitched in with two goals, one assist, six draw controls and two caused turnovers. Villareal recorded five draw controls and forced two turnovers. Kudlate added two goals, one assist and a ground ball, while Molly Beck handed out three assists.
Jane Bunn moved to 3-2 this season by picking up the win with a four-save performance. Saint Anselm limited Franklin Pierce to seven shots in the second half and outshot the Ravens 28-20 in the game.
Dale led the Ravens with four goals, Sweeney had three and Beliveau scored two. Briana Sweeney tallied one goal and set up two others. Denise Hunt made eight of her nine saves after the break in the loss.
Success on draw controls helped Saint Anselm's second-half surge, as the Hawks won six of seven after halftime and held an 18-9 advantage in the game. Franklin Pierce picked up 13 ground balls to 11 for Saint Anselm.
The Hawks host Bentley in NE-10 play on Wednesday, March 30 at 4 p.m. at Grappone Stadium.
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