For Immediate Release
April 29, 2009
Wellesley Sports Information
Wellesley Lacrosse Advances to NEWMAC Semis With Win Over Wheaton
WELLESLEY, Mass. – The Wellesley College lacrosse team opened up play in the 2009 NEWMAC Tournament with a 16-5 win over Wheaton College on Wednesday afternoon in Wellesley. The fourth-seeded Blue move to 9-7 on the year and advance to the NEWMAC Semifinals. Wheaton, the fifth seed, ends their season with a 6-10 record.
Wellesley got on the board first when Molly Morrow (Bow, NH) converted a free position attempt :54 seconds into the contest. Wheaton answered back, just over a minute later, when Caitlin Grant (Walpole, MA) tied the game at 1-1.
From that point on, Wellesley dominated the first half, going on an 8-1 run to close out the period with a 9-2 lead. Morrow led the first half scoring for the Blue with a hat trick, while Jenny Holland (Bethesda, MD) and Meredith Roy (Merrimack, NH) added two goals each. Loretta White (Northampton, MA) and Kate Cushing (Danvers, MA) also added goals for Wellesley, who held a 23-7 first half advantage in shots.
Wellesley increased the lead to 11-2 to open up the second half, after back-to-back goals from Holland and Morrow. Wheaton added a pair of their own from Grant and Brittany Whynot (Fountain Hills, AZ) to bring the lead back to seven goals (11-4) with 25 minutes to play.
After the teams traded goals, with Morrow scoring for the Blue and Whynot adding a score for the Lyons, Wellesley closed the game with four unanswered tallies to seal the 16-5 victory.
Although Wheaton held a 12-11 advantage in draw controls, Wellesley out shot the Lyons, 40-12, on the afternoon and led 21-5 in gound balls.
Grant led Wheaton with three scores while Whynot added a pair of goals. Bridget Thornton (Southington, CT) picked up a pair of helders in the contest, while Sydney Ferguson (Jamestown, RI) and Abbie Sherwin (Rye, NH) added solos assists. Defensively, Sherwin caused three turnovers while Marianna Marcellino (Milton, MA) recorded 16 stops in goal for the lyons.
Morrow led all scorers with six goals, adding an assist for a seven-point effort, while Holland picked up five goals and a helper. Rounding out the offense, Roy and Cushing added a pair of goals, White tallied a goal and an assist, and Briana Roberge (Bow, NH) and Elizabeth Hays (Roswell, GA) each added assists.
Defensively, Katie Saylor (San Diego, CA) had a fantastic game, causing five turnovers while adding four ground balls. Nicole Labbee (Florence, MA) recorded three caused turnovers while Cushing picked up four ground balls. In goal, Mary Mattia (Atlanta, GA) made six stops for the Blue.
The loss ends Wheaton's season, while the Blue advance to the NEWMAC semifinals to take on host and #1 seed Babson at 12:00pm.