Fourteen First-Half Scores Lift Becker College Past Women’s Lacrosse, 20-8
CHICOPEE, Mass. – Elms College junior net-minder Annette Dzidek (Chicopee, Mass.) recorded a career-best 21 saves but Becker College's Morgan Hazen (Woodstock, Vt.) scored eight goals and the Hawks netted 14 scores in the first half to help seal a 20-8 victory over the Blazers in Saturday afternoon's New England Women's Lacrosse Alliance (NEWLA) contest at Leary Field.
With the loss, Elms moves to 2-5 on the season, 0-2 in NEWLA action, while Becker improves to 5-2 overall, 1-0 in league play.
Trailing 2-0, Elms' junior attacker Emily Walsh (Hadley, Mass.) netted the first of her four goals to cut the deficit to 2-1 with 25:47 remaining in the opening period. Hazen scored at the 19:53 mark, before Blazers' junior attacker Chelsey Grabowski (South Hadley, Mass.) found the back of the net just 37 seconds later to set the score at 4-2. Grabowski then added her second tally of the half at the 18:21 mark and senior attacker Melissa Meon (South Hadley, Mass.) delivered a scoring strike to knot the game at 4-4 with 17:04 to play in the stanza.
Hazen and Felicia Zalik (Oxford, Conn.) each added a goal before Ashley Mossey (Ballston Lake, N.Y.) erupted for five straight scores to give the Hawks a commanding 12-4 lead at the 3:33 mark. Shannon Smith (Barre, Vt.) and Vanessa Laureano (Dracut, Mass.) each registered a goal in the final two minutes of the period to give Becker a 14-4 cushion at intermission.
The Hawks added two more strikes in the opening 3:56 minutes of the second half on a score by Hazen and one by Smith to extend the lead to 12 at 16-4 with 26:04 left in the game before Walsh recorded her second goal of the game at the 24:40 mark.
Walsh contributed two more goals and Grabowksi fired in another to give the Blazers eight goals in the game, but Becker maintained its offensive pressure as Hazen scored three more times and Samantha Jo-Dilkes (Little Falls, N.J.) scored one to help the Hawks complete its 20-8 victory.
Hazen finished with eight scores and scooped six groundballs, while Mossey connected for six scores and six groundballs for Becker.
Laureano added two goals and five assists, while Smith finished with two scores. Amanda Corso (West Haven, Conn.) dished out three assists, while Smith picked up a team-best seven groundballs in the winning effort.
Becker goalkeeper Alena Phongsa (Putnam, Conn.) turned away nine shots and improves to 5-2 between the pipes.
Grabowski corralled seven groundballs for the Blazers, while Walsh scooped up six in the losing effort.
Dzidek notched 13 of her saves in the first 30 minutes of play and suffered the loss to move to 2-5 on the season.
Elms returns to non-conference action on Monday, April 4 when it hosts Regis College for a 4:00 p.m. contest at Leary Field.
