HOBOKEN, N.J. (April 29, 2008) – Freshman midfielder Christine Smith earned three goals off of five shots on Tuesday night, but it wasn't enough as the 20th-ranked Stevens Institute of Technology women's lacrosse team lost in its regular-season finale to second-ranked The College of New Jersey by an 11-8 final at the De Baun Athletic Complex in Hoboken, N.J. With the defeat, the Ducks fell to 12-6 overall. As for the Lions, they improved to 15-1 on the year.
Freshman attacker Michelle Buonacuore registered a goal and an assist. Sophomore attacker Alyssa Pigott tallied two goals – both of which were in the free position. Freshman defender Kate Cox totaled one goal, one ground ball and two caused turnovers. Freshman attacker Leah Wasserman earned a goal and three draw controls. Senior goaltender Stephanie Linder made a game-high 13 saves for Stevens.
For TCNJ, senior midfielder Toni-Anne Cavallo (Cedar Grove, N.J.) scored a game-high four goals. She also had three ground balls and two draws. Senior midfielder Karen Doane (Bridgewater, N.J.) amassed six points off of three goals and three assists, which led all players. Freshman midfielder Allison Jaeger (Hampton, N.J.) added a hat trick as well. Senior attacker Diane Haddeland (Mahopac, N.Y.) won two ground balls and caused a pair of turnovers. Senior goalkeeper Caitlin Gregory (Winslow, N.J.) stopped 10 shots in the win.
In the first 12-plus minutes of the contest, the Lions jumped out to an early 6-1 lead. Doane chipped in with two goals and two assists. Cavallo tallied two goals, while Jaeger and sophomore attacker Lisa Seldeen (Wayne, N.J.) added a goal each. The Ducks answered with three straight goals to come within two at 6-4. Wasserman and Cox had an unassisted goal apiece. Smith scored the other on a feed from Buonacuore. TCNJ eventually went into intermission with a 7-4 advantage following a Doane goal with just over two minutes remaining.
In the second half, the Lions came out of the gate quick with a score from Jaeger just 2:43 into the period. The Ducks quickly responded with an unassisted goal by Smith to cut the deficit to three. Over the next 15 minutes, Stevens played strong defense and had three good opportunities to score but were knocked down by Gregory. Sophomore Katie Lalli put a shot on goal in the crease. Cox and Smith drew free-position shots but were both stoned by the TCNJ cage minder.
After that, the Lions scored three of the next four goals over a five-minute stretch to secure the victory. It gave the visitors an 11-6 lead with 1:41 to go. However, the Ducks refused to go down without a fight as they were able to scratch off two more goals in the final minute. Pigott and Buonacuore accounted for the scoring.
On a side note, the Ducks out-scored the No. 2 team in the country by an 8-6 count over the final 50 minutes of the game after they were originally trailing 5-0.
Stevens will now await word on a possible bid to the NCAA or ECAC Tournament. The brackets are slated to be released later in the week.
