The Hofstra Pride women’s lacrosse team overcame an early four-point deficit against the College of William & Mary on Saturday, April 23, winning 18-11 at Martin Family Stadium. The Pride improved to 8-7 overall and 2-3 in league play, while William & Mary fell to 4-11 overall and 0-5 in conference action.

The first period was controlled by William & Mary, beginning with a goal by Serena Jacobs with 12:53 left to play, before Grace Ahonen found the back of the net leaving the score 2-0. Hofstra answered with a goal by Grace Langella and assisted by Taylor Mennella with 7:43 on the clock. The Pride tied the game with a shot by Kerry Walser only 27 seconds later. William & Mary ended the period strong, adding four goals to take a 6-2 lead.

Hofstra opened the second period with a goal by Jackie Gatti, cutting the deficit to three. After a score by the Tribe, Hofstra put up four unanswered goals to tie the game at seven. William & Mary retook the lead with 2:56 to play, off a goal by Sarah Cipolla. Langella notched her second goal of the day with 36 seconds left to even the score at eight going into halftime.

William & Mary held a two-shot lead, 17-15, going into the break. Both teams had 13 shots on goal through the first two periods.

After one minute of play in the third period, Lauren Russell found the back of the net to go up 9-8, in what would be William & Mary’s final lead of the game. Walser continued her hot start with an unassisted goal with 12:32 remaining, before Kate Fiola reached the back of the net to lead 10-9. Lauren Coletti scored with 9:45 on the clock, and Fiola added another goal to hold a 12-9 advantage. The Tribe outscored Hofstra 2-1 in the final six minutes of the third quarter, trailing 13-11 going into the fourth period.

In the fourth, Hofstra shutout William & Mary and scored five goals of their own. Katie Whelan scored her 36th goal of the season 47 seconds into the frame. Coletti found the back of the net 32 seconds later, assisted by Fiola. Walser added two more goals and Kyndall Jackson notched the first goal of her career with 5:53 to play, as the Pride took home the road victory.

The Pride put up 28 shots on goal, compared to William & Mary’s 21. Hofstra had a two-shot lead overall, 33-31, and the Tribe committed two more turnovers than Hofstra, 17-15.

Walser scored a career-high five goals on six shots at goal. Coletti had four goals and Fiola put up three. Gatti scored two with four assists. Shannon Boyle led the team with five draw controls, while Whelan had four. Goalkeeper Jess Smith made 10 saves and added four ground balls.

Jacobs was perfect on the day, scoring four goals on four shots for William & Mary. Russell had two goals with one assist. Cipolla had two goals, one assist and five draw controls. Carolina Hertzberg also had five draw controls. Elise Palmer made 10 saves in the defeat.

Hofstra will wrap up regular season play on Saturday, April 30, hosting Elon University at James M. Shuart Stadium.

Photo courtesy of Evan Bernstein/The Hofstra Chronicle