HOBOKEN, N.J. (March 1, 2009) – Junior attack Alyssa Piggot and sophomore attack Leah Wasserman combined for nine goals as the Stevens Institute of Technology women's lacrosse team cruised to a 17-9 win over Farmingdale State College in the 2009 season-opener for both teams on Sunday night at the De Baun Athletic Complex in Hoboken, N.J. Stevens took an 11-3 lead into halftime, and senior captain Grace Sack stopped nine shots to earn the win in goal as five different Ducks scored multiple times.
Pigott scored four times and had two assists to go along with a team-high six groundballs, five caused turnovers, and four draw controls. Wasserman tallied five goals, picked up five ground balls and caused two turnovers.
After falling behind 1-0 early on, Wasserman scored twice just 1:40 apart to put the Ducks on top 2-1 with 25:31 to go in the first. Sophomore midfielder Christine Smith netted an unassisted goal to put Stevens on top 3-1 as the Ducks played a very solid opening half to the 2009 season.
After that first goal by the Rams, Stevens (1-0) went on to score 11 of the next 13 to build the aforementioned eight-goal lead at halftime. Following a Farmingdale tally by senior Theresa Rokee (Lindenhurst, N.Y.) to make the score 3-2, Stevens scored seven straight to build a 10-2 lead as Pigott scored three and assisted on two others in the run.
In the second half, the teams went back and forth as the Ducks never let the game get too close for comfort. Farmingdale State scored the first two goals, but Stevens answered with three of its own to get the lead back to nine. Wasserman scored two of the three in the spurt that essentially put the game away.
The Ducks ended the contest with a 40-26 advantage in shots, but only outshot the Rams 16-14 in the second half. Stevens had 29 groundballs compared to 18 for Farmingdale, and the Ducks won 17-of-28 draw controls.
Sack did a great job in net when it came to free-position shots. The Rams did not capitalize any of their seven attempts while the Ducks scored on two of their six free-position attempts.
Freshman Courtney Cook (Deer Park, N.Y.) was strong in goal for Farmingdale despite allowing 17 goals. The rookie made 17 saves in the first collegiate game of her career, stopping several 1-on-1 chances for Stevens.
In addition to Pigott and Wasserman, a number of other Ducks had very strong individual games. Smith finished with three goals on just five shots. She scooped up four ground balls and had a team-high six draw controls. Sophomore newcomer Karen Federico had two goals, one assist, two groundballs, and two caused turnovers and seemed to be all over the field.
Senior captain Ali Palen was solid on defense for Stevens, causing four turnovers and fellow captain Cassidy Callahan picked up three ground balls. Sophomore Pamela Loria set up three Duck goals and had three draw controls, and freshman midfielder Jenna Scheibling was strong in her debut with a goal, an assist, a draw control, and a caused turnover.
Rokee led the way for the Rams, scoring four goals and grabbing three draw controls.
Stevens returns to action at home on Wednesday when it hosts Fairleigh Dickinson University-Florham. The game is scheduled for a 4 p.m. start at the De Baun Athletic Complex. Those fans unable to attend can catch all the action live at www.Empire8.tv.
