Sports

Wheaton Lacrosse Looks to Come out on Top This Week

Men pick up 11-2 win with girls on top 23-10 in their last games.

has had a successful run in lacrosse lately, with the boys team defeating UMass Boston 11-2 and the girls winning 23-10 against Salve Regina University this week.

Senior Duncan Smith (Centerport, N.Y./Harborfields) scored four goals and classmate David Schroeder (Nashua, N.H./Nashua North) potted three as the Wheaton College men’s lacrosse team defeated UMass Boston 11-2 in non-conference action Wednesday afternoon at Mirrione Stadium.

Freshman Matthew Hillman (Brookline, Mass./Brookline) dished out three assist for the Lyons, who improved to 4-3 on the season, evened the all-time series with the Beacons (1-4) at five, and surpassed last season’s win total under first-year head coach Jamie Lockard. Wheaton blanked the Beacons for the first 41 minutes of the contest behind sophomore goalkeeper Harrison Bramhall (Barrington, R.I./Trinity Pawling), who finished the afternoon with eight saves.

“We played well today. UMass Boston is a good team that we knew would give us a battle,” said Lockard. “It was a grind through the first two-and-a-half quarters, but then we were able to pull ahead. This is what conference games are going to be like, so it was good to get this game in right before the conference schedule hits. It’s good to be 4-3 right now.”

In a half dominated by ball control by both teams, the Lyons scored once in the first quarter and again in the second to take a 2-0 lead into the break. Schroeder opened the scoring 2:44 into the game with his fourth of the season and scored the only goal of the second quarter at 5:40. Wheaton held a 19-8 edge in shots through the first 30 minutes of play while forcing 12 turnovers.

Play opened up for Wheaton in the second half as it scored four times in the opening 7:00 of the third quarter to extend its lead to 6-0. Smith’s sixth marker of the season at 12:12 off a feed from Hillman sparked the run. Schroeder picked up the hat trick with his sixth of the year at 10:56 before goals by sophomore Colby Shields (Yarmouth, Maine/Yarmouth) and Smith potted 13 seconds apart made it a six-goal advantage.

The Beacons finally got on the board with 3:54 remaining in the third on sophomore Domenic Fichera’s (Scituate, Mass./Boston College H.S.) sixth marker of the season. Harrington answered with his eighth of the season less than two minutes later to make it a 7-1 game after three.

In the fourth, sophomore Cam Hanlon (Hanson, Mass./Boston College H.S.) netted UMB’s second goal off a pass from senior Ryan FitzGerald (Abington, Mass./Abington) 1:03 into the stanza. The Lyons closed the game with four-straight goals as Duncan scored twice while juniors Ian Casey (Medway, Mass./Buckingham Browne & Nichols) and Sean Doherty (East Lyme, Conn./East Lyme) each potted one goal. Casey’s marker was the first of his collegiate career.

The Lyons went 2-for-6 with the man advantage and outshot the Beacons 40-21 on the afternoon. They also held UMass Boston’s leading scorer, freshman Donny Delpha (Walpole, Mass./Walpole), without a point.

Senior Anthony Fitti (Havertown, Pa./Haverford Senior) recorded 15 saves for the Beacons. Schroeder was one of four Lyons to record four ground balls while senior Eric Collins (Somerville, Mass./Matigon) notched three to lead UMB.

Men’s Lacrosse opens Pilgrim League play this Saturday with a 3 p.m. contest against Clark.

On the womens’ side, senior Hailey Colburn (Concord, N.H./Concord) scored six goals and dished out seven assists in Wheaton College’s 23-10 win over Salve Regina University in non-conference women’s lacrosse action Tuesday afternoon at Keefe Field.

Sophomore Charlotte DeSantis (Darien, Conn./Darien) added six goals and an assist for the Lyons (4-3), who improved to 5-0 all-time against the Seahawks (5-2). Sophomore Leila Mills (Brunswick, Maine/Brunswick) and freshman Melanie Sharick (Amherst, Mass./Amherst) each scored three goals and senior Sydney Ferguson (Jamestown, R.I./North Kingstown) chipped in with two goals and an assist.

Salve Regina was paced by junior Kelly Burke (Georgetown, Mass./Georgetown), who tallied four goals and also picked up an apple. Senior Sarah Livingston (Westford, Mass./Westford Academy) recorded a goal and two assists while freshman Jennifer Jones (Basking Ridge, N.J./Academy of St. Elizabeth) notched two goals and an assist.

The Lyons raced out to a 6-1 lead behind three goals by DeSantis and two by Colburn, and led 10-3 after 30 minutes of play. DeSantis finished the first half with four tallies while Sharick potted three goals and Colburn racked up three assists.

Wheaton opened the second half with goals by Mills, DeSantis, and Ferguson to open up a 10-goal lead at 13-3. The Seahawks answered with four-straight goals – including two by Burke – to cut their deficit to 13-7 before Colburn scored three goals in 2:07 to push Wheaton’s lead back to nine with 15 minutes to play. The lead never dipped below eight the rest of the way.

“We built an early lead, so we were able to use our entire bench,” said Lyons head coach Emily Kiablick. “Our starters are really strong and we rely on them heavily throughout the season, but it’s good to know we have great athletes coming off the bench as well.”

Colburn and sophomore Devin Soucier (Avon, Conn./Northwest Catholic) each collected three ground balls to lead Wheaton, which outshot the Seahawks 46-16. Freshman Katy Ananian (Belmont, Mass./Belmont) recorded six saves to earn her fourth win of the season.

Burke, sophomore Kristie Cox (Nashua, N.H./Nashua South), and freshman Gina Tortorici (Deer Park, N.Y./Deer Park) each won three draw controls for the Seahawks. Freshman goalkeeper Josie O’Reilly (Middletown, R.I./Portsmouth Abbey) recorded 15 saves to fall to 5-2 on the season.

The Lyons return to action on tonight when they head to Bridgewater State for a 7 p.m. contest.


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