BRISTOL, R.I.– The Roger Williams University women's lacrosse team started their season off on the right foot, avenging their lone regular season loss of last season, opening the season with a 15-8 win over Springfield.
After opening last season with a 10-9 loss at the hands of the Pride, Roger Williams rebounded to pick up the first ever win in program history against Springfield.
Caroline Roach (Acton, Mass.) started the game in the cage for the Hawks allowing three goals, and making seven saves in cage for .700 save percentage, picking up the win in 45 minutes of play. Zoey Cormican (Rochester, N.H.) entered the contest and made four saves in relief.
In the field, Mandy Beck (Old Saybrook, Conn.) was the leading point scorer for the Hawks tallying three goals and three assists, while also forcing a pair of turnovers. Lily Cunningham (Melrose, Mass.) also had three goals, with two assists on the day for five points, with two caused turnovers, and a pair of ground ball pickups. Ryleigh Cavanaugh (Manchester, N.H.) added three goals, while Julia Kelley (Foxborough, Mass.) added a pair for Roger Williams. Brooke McErlain (Hampton, N.H.) was able to snag a team-high six ground ball in the contest, with Lauren Canata (West Springfield, Mass.) adding four ground balls of her own.
Haley Moody was in the cage for Springfield making 13 saves in the contest. The Pride were led by Jade O'Connor who tallied four goals and four ground balls while forcing a turnover. Arielle Johnson also tallied a pair of goals and six ground balls.
Springfield jumped out to a 1-0 lead, 1:12 into the contest, after O'Connor scored off a free position attempt. The Pride followed with their second goal of the game 21 seconds later when Lilly Vey found Sarah Newton onpen for her first goal of the season.
With 10:54 remaining in the first quarter, Cunningham was on the receiving end of a pass from Karli Chapin, that Cunningham then buried into the back of the net. Cavanaugh then scored 2:58 later to level the score at 2-2. A pair of goals over a 2:11 span at the end of the first quarter gave Roger Williams a 4-2 lead heading into the second frame.
In the second quarter the Hawks struck three more times, with Cunningham, Cavenaugh, and Kelley each finding twine in the quarter. The third quarter saw the Hawks again come out firing, with two goals in the opening 2:30. The Pride added a goal with 11:37 remaining in the quarter, before the Hawks scored four straight to close out the frame.
The Pride were able to put five shots into the back of the cage in the fourth quarter, but Roger Williams was able to hold on for the victory.
Roger Williams (1-0, 0-0 CCC) will host Wheaton on Wednesday, Mar. 1 at 4 pm on Bayside Field. The Hawks will then travel to Bowdoin for a Sunday, Mar. 5 contest against the Polar Bears, before hosting MIT on Saturday, Mar. 11 at 1 pm.
