MANCHESTER, N.H. – Six student-athletes scored multiple goals for the Saint Anselm College women's lacrosse team on the way to a dominant 21-8 victory against Franklin Pierce on Friday night. The Hawks improved to 10-4 overall and 5-3 in Northeast-10 Conference (NE10) play following the victory on Senior Night, the team's final home game of the regular season.
UP NEXT:
- Saint Anselm heads to Worcester, Mass. to face Assumption in NE10 action on Wednesday, April 16th at 7:00 p.m.
Score: Saint Anselm 21, Franklin Pierce 8
Records: Saint Anselm (10-4, 5-3 NE10), Franklin Pierce (3-8, 1-5 NE10)
Location: Manchester, N.H. (Grappone Stadium)
Date: Friday, April 11, 2025
Attendance: 374
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Prior to the game, a special Senior Day ceremony was held to honor seven Saint Anselm student-athletes: Jaycie Balboni (Billerica, Mass.), Abigail Christmas (Elmira, N.Y.), Erin Christmas (Elmira, N.Y.), Elizabeth Driscoll (Marblehead, Mass.), Alex McGrath (Natick, Mass.), Samantha Rivet (Sudbury, Mass.), and Kendra Sabotka (Rutland, Vt.).
- Once the game got underway, Saint Anselm's offense exploded early on and jumped out to a commanding 9-0 lead in just the first 10 minutes. Freshman Ayla McDermod (Hanover, Mass.) scored three goals during that stretch for the Hawks, while Abigail Christmas and Sabtoka each had two.
- Erin McIlroy got Franklin Pierce on the board with their first goal, but Christmas responded by finishing her third of the quarter with a minute remaining as Saint Anselm held a 10-1 edge after 15 minutes of action.
- Less than 30 secoconds into the second quarter, McIlroy scored a player-up goal for the Ravens to cut the deficit to 10-2.
- The Hawks hit back with four unanswered goals to increase their lead to 14-2. Balboni, Rivet, and sophomore Alyssa Hill (Brookline, N.H.) all scored in the second quarter for the Hawks, while McDermod found the back of the net for the fourth time.
- Courtney Hannes scored the final goal of the half for the Ravens, but they trailed at halftime, 14-3.
- Christmas added her fourth tally of the evening off a feed from Hill a little over a minute into the third quarter. McDemrod added her fifth of the game a few minutes later as Saint Anselm extended their lead to 16-3.
- Midway through the third, Franklin Pierce scored consecutive goals as Hannes and Olivia Robb each scored, with Robb's coming on a player-up opportunity.
- Before the end of the quarter, sophomore Lucy Mawn (Harwich, Mass.) beat the goalie with a shot off another assist from Hill as the Hawks led by a dozen entering the fourth, 17-5.
- Saint Anselm did not take their foot off the gas as they added two more scores early in the final period of play. Sabotka set up Rivet for her second goal of the game before completing her hat trick with a player-down goal.
- McIlroy and Robb each scored once again for Franklin Pierce shortly after to bring the margin back down to 12.
- With 7:30 remaining, freshman Jackie Tattan (North Andover, Mass.) was able to get on the scoresheet for the Hawks with her first collegiate goal that made it 20-7.
- Robb got one more to go for the Ravens with five minutes left, but freshman Devan Spinale (Canton, Mass.) had the last goal of the game for the Hawks to seal their 21-8 victory.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
- Saint Anselm doubled up Franklin Pierce in both total shots, 38-19, and shots on goal, 30-15.
- The Hawks controlled the center circle with a 19-7 advantage in draw controls. Mawn led the Hawks with a career-high 12 draw controls and now has a team-high 73 this season, which is third-most in the NE10.
- Saint Anselm also held a 16-13 edge in ground balls. Driscoll and Rivet led the Hawks with four ground balls apiece.
- Franklin Pierce committed 11 turnovers in the game, while Saint Anselm had nine giveaways.
- The Hawks defense caused three of those turnovers, while the Ravens defense forced six turnovers.
- On clear attempts, Saint Anselm went 10-11 (90.9%) and Franklin Pierce went 7-14 (50.0%).
- Both teams scored only one free-position shot in the game. The Hawks went 1-6 on free-position chances (16.7%), while the Ravens went 1-3 (33.3%).
- The game featured only three penalties with the Hawks being called for all three. There were two green cards and one yellow card issued. As a result, the Ravens scored two player-up goals in the contest, while the Hawks finished with a player-down score.
- McDermod matched her career-high with five goals to lead Saint Anselm. It was her 11th multi-goal game of the season. She leads the team and is tied for seventh in the NE10 with 38 goals this spring.
- Abigail Christmas posted four goals for the Hawks, good for her third straight game and sixth this season with at least three scores. She is second on the squad with 34 goals on the year.
- Sabtoka led Saint Anselm with a career-high six-point performance after scoring three goals and dishing out three assists. It was her sixth hat trick of the season.
- Three other Hawks scored multiple goals in the contest, including Balboni who also added a pair of assists.
- Hill scored once and produced a team-high four assists in the game for the Hawks. Hill leads the team and is third in the NE10 with 27 assists this season, while her 48 points also lead the team and rank eighth in the conference.
- McIlroy and Robb scored three goals apiece to lead Franklin Pierce.
- Driscoll made six saves in a little over three quarters of action and posted a .545 save percentage for the Hawks in the win.
- Sage Paradise made nine saves and allowed 19 goals in three quarters of action for the Ravens in the loss.
- This marked the 27th all-time meeting between these two programs. Saint Anselm improves to 23-4 overall against Franklin Pierce in the series that began in 2000. The Hawks have now won 11 straight games against the Ravens and have not lost since 2015.
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