MANCHESTER, N.H. – The No. 23 Saint Anselm College women's lacrosse team fell to No. 9 Stonehill College on Friday by a 16-13 score.

With the loss, the Hawks fall to 7-8 on the season and 5-7 in Northeast-10 Conference play while the Skyhawks improve to 14-2 overall and 12-1 against the league. Saint Anselm will conclude its season on Saturday, Apr. 30 at the College of Saint Rose with the opening draw control set for 5 p.m.

Senior Jenna Balboni (Billerica, Mass.) led the Hawks offense with four-goals while sophomore Alison Ferullo (North Andover, Mass.) added three goals. Juniors Lexi Palmisano (Woburn, Mass.) and Ellie Richards (Reading, Mass.) found the back of the cage two times each for Saint Anselm.

Palmisano has 45 goals this season which is the most in a single season since Meaghan Sheehy '18 went for 46 tallies in the 2018 season.

Senior Grace Young (Merrimack, N.H.) turned aside 13 shots on goal, marking her third consecutive game with double-digit saves. Young has eclipsed 300 career saves and now sits at 308.

A goal at 7:55 of the third quarter by Stonehill's Molly Mae Hughes gave the hosts a four-goal lead at 10-6. That would be the largest lead for Stonehill in the contest, which they hit two other times in the contest.

Balboni and Emma Sullivan traded goals which set up a three-goal run by the Hawks to close the third quarter. Ferullo, Palmisano, and sophomore Isabella Stuzynski (Bedford, Mass.) scored the Saint Anselm goals on the stretch, which saw the teams head to the final regulation quarter with Stonehill leading, 11-10.

After more swapping of goals, the Hawks were the first team to net back-to-back goals in the fourth quarter as Balboni and Ferullo combined to tie the score at 13 with 7:19 to play. However, Kayla Conway and Hughes netted the game's final three goals to pull away with the 16-13 win.

Earlier in the game, sophomore Jess Sullivan (Wrentham, Mass.) opened the scoring just 32 seconds into the contest. After a goal by Stonehill, Ferullo regained the lead for Saint Anselm at 7:16 of the first quarter. The Skyhawks took control of the contest with four consecutive goals, taking a 5-2 lead in the opening minute of the second quarter.

Palmisano snapped the scoring run before each squad netted two goals to close the first half with Stonehill leading, 7-5.

Richards opened the third frame with her second goal of the day but Lydia Rudden, Kendall Fressle, and Hughes gave the hosts the four goal lead at 10-6.

Stonehill held a 33-31 edge in shots and a 29-21 advantage in shots on goal. The Hawks were 18-of-20 in clears compared to 15-of-20 for the Skyhawks. Saint Anselm scooped 26 ground balls and grabbed
14 draw while Stonehill gathered 25 ground balls and 19 draw controls.