BIDDEFORD, Maine - The Roger Williams University Women's Lacrosse team held off a late surge to defeat the University of New England, 14-13, in a close Conference of New England (CNE) matchup on Saturday afternoon. The win was highlighted by a milestone performance from Allie Shamberger (Saratoga Springs, N.Y.), who recorded her 100th career goal in the victory.

Sydney Balotin of UNE struck first midway through the opening frame, but Roger Williams responded with a strong offensive push led by Shamberger, who then evened the score off an assist from Lauren Canata (West Springfield, Mass.) before adding a second goal moments later to give the Hawks a 2-1 lead. The Nor'easters answered on a man-up opportunity to tie the game, but RWU regained momentum as Shamberger completed her hat trick off a feed from Miranda Hayes (South Burlington, Vt.). UNE found the equalizer late in the quarter to put the game at 3-3 heading into the second.

Roger Williams took control in the second quarter, with seven unanswered goals to build a commanding lead. Hayes opened the scoring for the Hawks to give RWU a 4-3 edge, sparking a dominant run. Mikayla Fey (Bethlehem, Pa.) and Canata followed with back-to-back goals, both assisted by Shamberger, before Shamberger added one of her own off a feed from Hayes. The offensive surge continued with goals from Molly Schmitz (Hamden, Conn.) and Meaghan Holmes (Pembroke, Mass.) while Schmitz later added her second of the quarter off another assist from Hayes. Strong play in net from Aizza Chase (Cohasset, Mass.) helped maintain momentum, as the Hawks carried a 10-3 lead into halftime.

UNE opened the third quarter, capitalizing on a free-position goal by Sydney Balotin to cut into the deficit. Roger Williams answered as Canata finished a feed from Hayes to extend the lead to 11-4. However, the Nor'easters responded with a strong run, scoring five of the next six goals to narrow the gap. Hayes tucked in another goal for RWU, but UNE continued to push late in the quarter, trimming the deficit to 12-9 heading into the fourth.

UNE continued its push in the fourth quarter, opening the scoring and slowly chipping away at the RWU lead. Schmitz responded for the Hawks with a goal off an assist from Canata to make it 13-10, but the Nor'easters answered with three straight goals, two coming on man-up opportunities, to tie the game at 13-13 with just minutes remaining. With the game on the line, Jamie Anthony (Somers, Conn.) delivered the decisive moment, scoring in the final minute to put Roger Williams back in front. The Hawks controlled the final draw, holding on for a 14-13 victory.

Roger Williams outshot UNE 25-23 in the contest, including a 20-16 edge in shots on goal. The Hawks also controlled draw controls 19-10 and ground balls 16-12. Both teams were nearly even in turnovers, with Roger Williams committing 19 to UNE's 18.

Chase anchored the defense in net for Roger Williams, making three saves while Olivia Ferraro recorded six saves for UNE, keeping the Nor'easters within striking distance throughout the contest.

Roger Williams (8-7, 7-2 CNE) will be back in action on Sunday, April 19th, as they travel to Colby for a non-conference matchup.