WEST HAVEN, Conn. - Junior
Kendra Sabotka (Rutland, Vt.) scored a career-high four goals as the nationally ranked No. 21 Saint Anselm College women's lacrosse team defeated No. 22 the University of New Haven, 13-11, on Saturday afternoon. The Hawks improve to 4-2 in Northeast-10 Conference (NE10) play after handing the Chargers their second league loss of the season.
UP NEXT:
- Saint Anselm continues NE10 action on Wednesday, April 10, taking on Franklin Pierce University. The conference tilt is slated for a 4:00 p.m. start time from Rindge, N.H.
Score: No. 21 Saint Anselm 13, No. 22 New Haven 11
Records: No. 21 Saint Anselm 7-4 (4-2 NE10), No. 22 New Haven 5-4 (3-2 NE10)
Location: West Haven, Conn. (Kathy Zolad Stadium)
Date: Saturday, April 6, 2024
Attendance: 115
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Senior Jess Sullivan (Wrentham, Mass.) and junior Samantha Rivet (Sudbury, Mass.) opened the scoring for the Hawks with a goal apiece to jump out to an early 2-0 lead. At the 9:48 mark, Katie Schenk put New Haven on the scoreboard with a free-position goal to cut Saint Anselm's lead in half.
- Hawks junior goaltender Elizabeth Driscoll (Marblehead, Mass.) denied Ivanna Hernandez a goal-scoring chance with her first save of the day at the 7:45 mark. Shorty after, freshman Lucy Mawn (Harwich, Mass.) notched her first goal of the game with under five minutes remaining in the first quarter to give Saint Anselm a 3-1 advantage.
- New Haven quickly responded as Schenk netted her second of the day followed by another score from Caitlin Seleny to tie the game up at 3-3.
- Saint Anselm answered in the last minute of the quarter by tallying two late goals to take a 5-3 lead heading into the second. Sabotka fired a shot past New Haven goalie Gabby Buscemi before Sullivan notched her second score to take a two-goal edge.
- Schenk started the second quarter by securing her hat trick to narrow the Hawks' lead to one goal. Driscoll then produced another stop after Cameryn Antler attempted a shot from a free-position spot.
- Sabotka answered at the 11:06 mark to pick up her second score of the game and extend Saint Anselm's lead back up to two goals. On the following possession, New Haven scored again to make it 6-5 thanks to Seleny earning her second goal. The Chargers kept pushing their attack, posting two more shot attempts and forcing a save by Driscoll before Schenk found the back of the cage to even the score at 6-6.
- The Hawks continued to battle as freshman Alyssa Hill (Brookline, N.H.) forced a save from Buscemi followed by a shot off the post by Rivet. Driscoll stood her ground in the cage, producing two late stops to keep the game level at 6-6 at halftime.
- After two early free-position attempts for New Haven, Sullivan fired a shot on target that Buscemi saved to begin the third quarter. The Chargers then notched the first goal of the second half at the 12:53 mark to take their first lead of the day at 7-6.
- At the 11:26 mark, Sabotka responded by netting her third for the hat trick to even the score at seven apiece. Junior Jaycie Balboni (Billerica, Mass.) added another goal for Saint Anselm a few minutes later to help the Hawks regain an 8-7 lead.
- Sabotka continued her goal-scoring tear, notching her fourth to take a two-goal lead over the Chargers with under eight minutes left in the quarter.
- After Gianna Caprioli cut Saint Anselm's lead back down to one-goal, sophomore Lucy Davis (Roswell, Ga.) score her third goal of the season to give the Hawks a 10-8 advantage heading into the final quarter of the game.
- Saint Anselm took control early in the fourth quarter as senior Alison Ferullo (North Andover, Mass.) and junior Abigail Christmas (Elmira, N.Y.) each tallied a score apiece in the opening minutes to take a 12-8 lead.
- Schenk soon answered for New Haven by scoring her fifth goal from a free-position spot to make it 12-9. Shortly after Sullivan rifled a shot on frame to force the fifth save of the day for Buscemi, Schenk scored her second free-position goal of the quarter at the 7:40 mark, closing the Hawks lead down to two-goals.
- Christmas again found the back of the cage off a feed from Rivet to give Saint Anselm a three-goal cushion with four minutes left in the game.
- With 1:45 remaining in the game, Schenk posted her seventh goal of the day off the assist from Seleny to make it 13-11. With 21 seconds on the clock, New Haven earned a late free-position attempt, but Driscoll produced the stop to help the Hawks secure the win over the Chargers by a final score of 13-11.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
- Despite the scoreline, New Haven outshot Saint Anselm by a 28-22 margin and held a 20-18 edge in shots on goal.
- The Hawks committed 17 turnovers and caused five while the Chargers had 14 turnovers and caused seven in the game.
- The Chargers snagged 12 ground balls in comparison to the Hawks with nine. Saint Anselm edged New Haven, 19-18, in successful clears on 24 attempts for both teams.
- Sabotka led the Hawks with a career-high four goals for four points in the win along with one ground ball and one caused turnover. Christmas and Sullivan each recorded a pair of goals each and combined for seven total shot attempts.
- Rivet and Mawn ended the game with one goal and one assist apiece while senior Isabella Stuzynski (Bedford, Mass.) tallied a team-high two assists to bring her to 22 total assists so far this season.
- Senior Erin Doyle (Weymouth, Mass.) led Saint Anselm with four caused turnovers and five ground balls in the game.
- Schenk led the charge for New Haven by scoring a career-high seven goals for seven points after producing nine total shot attempts. Caprioli notched a pair of scores along with five ground balls and two caused turnovers.
- Driscoll earned her sixth win of the season after making nine saves and allowing 11 goals in the cage for Saint Anselm. Buscemi picked up the loss for New Haven after posting five saves and allowing 13 goals.
- This marked the 23rd meeting between these two programs with Saint Anselm earning their sixth win against New Haven in the all-time series.
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