HOBOKEN, N.J. (April 27, 2021)  – Fifth-year Kyra Bednarski netted her 10th hat trick of the season to become the Stevens Institute of Technology women's lacrosse program's all-time leading scorer as the Ducks defeated Wilkes University 21-3 Tuesday evening in a MAC Freedom quarterfinal matchup at the DeBaun Athletic Complex. 

Entering the game four points shy of Hall of Famer Alyssa Pigott, Bednarski wasted little time in getting on the scoreboard, assisting on classmate Emily Shanklin's 22nd goal of the season three minutes into the contest. She then fed junior Camryn Rogers for a short-handed goal that gave the Ducks a 3-0 lead. The pair hooked up again three minutes later before Bednarski scored the Ducks' sixth and seventh goals to reach 390 points and stand alone atop the program's career scoring leaders.

Bednarski began the milestone moment with a dodge around her defender just outside the eight-meter mark. After curling to her left, the Syracuse, New York native uncorked a laser of a shot over the shoulder of Wilkes netminder Ashley Coughlin that hit right in the center of the net to send her teammates into a celebration. Bednarski, who finished the game with three goals and matched a season-high with six assists, was presented with the ball, which was removed from the field following the record-breaking play, after the game. The nine-point outing pushed Bednarski's career total to 254 goals and 140 assists. 

"So proud of Kyra to be the new career leader in points," said head coach Karen Shaddock. "I'm so glad I've had the opportunity to coach her."

Rogers finished with six goals and an assist and sophomore Zoe Cook and junior Morgan Westerby each had a hat trick for the Ducks, who won their fourth straight to improve to 8-4 on the year. The Ducks have won a postseason game in each of the two postseasons the team has reached under Shaddock.

"Really happy with the dominant performance tonight," Shaddock said. "Glad we were able to have so many different student-athletes score."

Camryn Devitt had a pair of goals and Domenica Lerch added a goal and an assist for Wilkes, who dropped to 2-8. Stevens improved to 2-0 all-time against the Colonels.

"I thought our defensive players did very well tonight," Shaddock offered. "Kayla and Tara did a great job leading them."

Shanklin finished with two goals as 10 different student-athletes found the scoresheet. Juniors Julieann Murphy and Maeve McGovern also found the back of the net, as did sophomore Maris Daly and first-year Carly Walker. Walker's second-half tally marked the first of her collegiate career. Zoe Cook finished with two assists and Murphy and first-year Emily Leiby each had one to round out the Ducks' offensive production.

Senior Peyton Taylor drew the start and made two saves. Junior Lauren Cunniff took over at the start of the second half and made one save. Coughlin finished nine saves in defeat for Wilkes.

Bednarski and Rogers accounted for eight of the 11 goals the Ducks put on the board in building a commanding advantage. Lerch and Devitt scored 61 seconds apart to briefly slow down Stevens' offense, but Westerby and Murphy pushed the lead back to double digits in closing out the first half. Murphy's marker came with eight seconds left in the opening period.

Rogers opened scoring in the second half with her 35th goal of the year. The Branchburg, New Jersey native ranks third in the conference with a career-best 5.50 points per game. Goals from Cook, Westerby and Shanklin followed as the Ducks built a 17-2 lead. 

McGovern and Daly added special teams goals for the Ducks before Walker closed out scoring on the Ducks' next-to-last possession of the game. Stevens finished the game with three shorthanded goals and a woman-up goal.

The Ducks fired off a season-high 41 shots, with 30 registering on goal. Rogers ledd all student-athletes with 11 shots, while Zoe Cook had seven. Lurch, Devitt and Ashley Burkhardt each had two to pace Wilkes.

Stevens forced Wilkes into 20 turnovers on the evening, with many of them taking place on failed clears. The Ducks caused 12 of the 20, with Bednarski causing a career-high five, while sophomore Colleen Shea caused two. Conversely, Stevens had 10 turnovers, with Wilkes causing six.

In terms of clearing attempts, Stevens finished 12 for 14, including a perfect 5 for 5 in the second half. The Ducks held Wilkes to just 7 for 12 on the evening, including a 3 for 8 performance in the first half.

Stevens won 17 of the game's 24 draw controls, outearning the Colonels by five in each half. Rogers matched a career high with seven, while Westerby had five. Lerch and Abby Miller each had two to lead Wilkes.

Bednarski scooped up a season-high five ground balls in helping Stevens to a 19-10 advantage in the statistic. Rogers and junior Natalie Fitzpatrick each added two as 13 different student-athletes each had one. Coughlin had three to pace the Colonels.

Stevens went 1 for 5 on free-position attempts, with Bednarski accounting for the lone eight-meter goal on the evening. The Ducks held Wilkes scoreless on four free-position shots, with Taylor saving two eight-meter attempts and Cunniff stopping one.

The Ducks successfully killed off each of their four penalties and were successful on the woman-up opportunity caused by Brooklyn Pedana's yellow card.

Up Next: Women's Lacrosse heads to Dallas, Pennsylvania on Apr. 29 for a semifinal matchup with the second-seeded Misericordia University Cougars. Live stats and video links will be published to StevensDucks.com when available. Please note that all event times, dates and opponents are subject to change.

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