SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (May 11, 2024) – Graduate student Zoe Cook, senior Emily Leiby and junior Anna Velardi each finished with three goals to power No. 14 Stevens Institute of Technology women's lacrosse past Springfield College 15-8 Saturday in an NCAA first-round matchup at Stagg Field. 

With the victory, the Ducks, who improved to 17-3, have won an opening round contest in each of the last three seasons and for the fifth time in the program's seven all-time NCAA appearances. The victory moved this 2024 squad within one win of matching the program record for wins in a single season, which was set in 2022 and matched last year.

Winners of five straight, Stevens will face No. 15 Babson College Sunday in a second-round contest, which will be hosted by Springfield. The Ducks and Beavers have met just once in their respective histories, with Stevens earning a 15-7 victory on Mar. 19, 2005, in a neutral-site contest in West Palm Beach, Florida.

Izzy Lalancette had three goals to pace Springfield, who fell to 15-5. The Ducks improved to 3-0 all-time against the Pride.

Sophomore Felicity Heilferty made five saves to earn the victory. The Westtown. New York native has allowed a total of 10 goals across three postseason games. Haley Moody stopped eight shots in a losing effort for Springfield. Moody has allowed double-digit goals in four of her final six outings of the season. 

As Stevens took control of the game in the first quarter, the defensive corps again keyed on the opponents' top scorer. Led by sophomore Lauren Sullivan, the Ducks held Lily Johnson to just two goals on six shots (just three on goal). 

The Rundown

• Despite the outcome, it was Springfield that broke through first as Lalancette netted her 46th goal of the season midway through the opening quarter. 
• The high-powered Duck offense seized control of the contest over a near-three minute stretch shortly thereafter. Sophomore Stefanie Sellitto snagged the draw control following Lalancette's and converted the possession, resulting in her 64th goal of the season. Sophomore Lindsay Esposito earned the ensuing draw control. A shooting space foul was whistled against Springfield and led to Leiby converting the free-position shot. Sullivan kept possession with Stevens by winning the next draw, which junior Alison Lax was the beneficiary of for her 22nd goal of the season. Sellitto secured her second draw of the sequence and after a Springfield green card, junior Emily Smart found Velardi for a woman-up goal to push the lead to four.
• Johnson netted her first of the game to slow down the Stevens offense, but Lax added a short-handed goal to the total with just 17 seconds left in the opening quarter to reclaim a three-goal lead.
• Each team scored in the second quarter to send the sides into halftime with Stevens holding a 6-3 advantage. However, the Ducks broke the game open with four unanswered goals to open scoring in the third period, including consecutive power-play goals by Leiby and Cook over an 83-second span.
• Springfield produced its best offensive sequence with three straight goals in the middle stages of the third quarter, but goals from Leiby and Velardi quickly squashed a comeback attempt. Back-to-back goals by the Pride bridged the final two quarters, but a pair of Sellitto goals sandwiched a marker from junior Rebecca Guerra to produce the final margin of victory. 

Top Performers

• Leiby scored all three of her goals on free-position shots. Velardi was the only other Duck to convert from eight meters.
• Esposito caused two turnovers as the Ducks forced half of Springfield's 10 turnovers.
• Sellitto finished with nine draw controls as the Ducks were able to keep Springfield's offense off the field over several key stretches with an 18-9 advantage in the statistic. Seven of the Ducks' 18 draws came in the first quarter as Stevens built its lead.
• Smart finished with three assists. 
• The Ducks finished 13 of 16 on clears but were perfect in the second half.
• The teams combined for 15 cards.

For the Opponents

• Two of Lalancette's three goals on the day came on free-position attempts. 
• Arielle Johnson and Sarah Newton each had an assist.

Around the NCAA Tournament

• No. 12 Roanoke 24, Hope 6 F/May 10
• St. John Fisher 17, Endicott 8
• No. 16 York 17, Johnson & Wales (R.I.) 3
• No. 23 Shenandoah 17, SUNY Canton 9
• No. 20 Trinity (Conn.) 20, Farmingdale State 0
• No. 19 MIT 18, Plymouth State 10
• Cabrini 14, No. 24 Haverford 12
• SUNY Cortland 13, Westfield State 9
• Rhodes 22, Transylvania 9
• Catholic 19, Meredith 5
• No. 22 Scranton 18, Lake Forest 6
• Colorado College 18, Aurora, 2
• St. Mary's 16, Grove City 1
• No. 12 Roanoke vs. Capital – 4 p.m. start

Up Next

• No. 14 Stevens faces No. 15 Babson Sunday in a second-round matchup on Stagg Field. Links for live stats and video are posted to StevensDucks.com.

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