The Montclair State University women’s lacrosse team defeated The College at Brockport 14-12 on March 25 at Sprague field, to win their third straight game and move themselves above the .500 marks for the first time this season.
Trailing 1-4 to the visiting Brockport Golden Eagles, the Red Hawks had their work cut out for them early on at Sprague field on Sunday. The Red Hawks did not get down on themselves and climbed back into this tussle with four unanswered goals. Senior attack Chelsea Orban started it off scoring with 20:15 remaining. Sophomore midfielder Sydnee Sapp followed Orban’s lead with two goals to tie the game at 4-4. Sophomore attack Kyle Graver capped off the comeback by scoring to give the Red Hawks a 5-4 lead with six minutes remaining in the first half.
Following the Red Hawks’ four straight goals, Brockport’s attack on Heather Conklin netted two goals to give the Golden Eagles a 6-5 lead with three minutes left in the first half. The Red Hawks responded with goals from Graver and freshman Rhiannon Brown to reclaim the lead once again and go up 7-6 as the halftime whistle sounded.
Throughout this game, the Red Hawks had trouble defending in the first five minutes of each half. Brockport began the second half strongly where Conklin notched her fifth goal of the contest one minute in. Conklin’s fifth-goal was followed by a goal from Andrea Zlinsky, which gave Brockport a slim 8-7 lead.
The Red Hawks would take the lead right back when Sapp and Brittany Costigan scored to make it a 9-8 Red Hawks lead. During the next five minutes of play, neither team scored, but the silence was broken when Brown and Orban scored their second goals of the game and the Red Hawks led 12-9.
With 15 minutes left in the second half, junior midfielder Jessica Andreula scored a free position attempt. Orban also scored on a free position attempt to push the Red Hawks in front 14-9. The goal was Orban’s 100th point of her career and she becomes the 24th player in Red Hawks history to achieve this feat.
After taking the lead 14-9, Brockport responded with three goals to make the score 14-12, but that is where the score would stay. Brockport attempted only one more shot at freshman goalkeeper Allyn Lilien’s goal in the final 10 minutes of this game and in a relief appearance, Lilien made 10 saves to hold down the fort on Sunday at Sprague field.
On Sunday afternoon the Red Hawks underclassmen, like sophomore Sapp, freshmen Brown, Costigan and Lilien proved that they are ready to contribute to the team this season. Sapp stepped up for the Red Hawks with three goals, while Brown and Costigan added two goals each to help the Red Hawks win their third-straight game.
For the second-straight week, freshman midfielder Costigan was named the New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) women’s lacrosse rookie of the week. Costigan did it all for the Red Hawks because she scored two goals, won six draws and forced five turnovers against Brockport to help earn her team a momentous victory at home.
The Red Hawks will play their next game at home against the visiting Middlebury College Panthers on Thursday, March 29 at 3 p.m. The Panthers currently rank second in the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC).
The Red Hawks will host their first NJAC game on Saturday, April 7 at 12 p.m. against The College of New Jersey (TCNJ), who are off to a good start with a 6-1 record. The NJAC conference is shaping up to be a competitive one this year. A matchup with rivals TCNJ on home turf is a game that, if the Red Hawks can win, could generate more momentum for the Red Hawks, who currently are on a three-game winning streak.
