First half effort lifts Gulls past MIT
March 7, 2009
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. - The Endicott College women's lacrosse team moved to 2-0 with a three goal win, 15-12, over MIT on Saturday afternoon in Cambridge, Mass. It was the second time in as many games that Gulls used a strong first half to secure their victory. Alex Pearce tallied a game-high six points on four goals and two assists for the Gulls (2-0), while MIT's Samantha O'Keefe paced the Engineers (0-1) with four.
Each side traded goals to start the contest as an extra-man goal by MIT's Lynne Tye evened the score at three after 10 minutes expired. Endicott responded with six straight goals, including three by Pearce to secure the lead. The Engineers countered with two goals during the final minute of the half. O'Keefe registered a solo effort with 55 seconds on the clock before Katie Kauffman connected on a free-position shot 13 seconds later. Despite the late rally, the Gulls entered the intermission with a 9-5 advantage.
MIT quickly narrowed the gap to three on an unassisted goal by Kauffman after 21 seconds elapsed. Endicott recorded three out of the next four goals to extend its margin to five (12-7) with 19:29 remaining in the game. The Engineers responded with a 3-1 spurt of their own during the next six minutes to once again come within three (13-10). Sara Gunter and Rebecca Bushnell helped push the Gulls' lead back to five with 1:03 on the clock. The Cardinal and Gray continued to attack with Erica Little and O'Keefe finding the back of the net at 47 and four seconds, respectively.
In net, Molly McCartin collected 10 saves for the Engineers while Molly Hamel made 15 stops for Endicott.
MIT returns to action on Thursday, March 12 when it travels to Williams College. Next up for Endicott will be a home game against Colby College on Sunday, March 15.