MASSACHUSETTS MARITIME WOMEN’S LACROSSE

Saturday, April 29, 2017

Elliot Field, Fitchburg, Mass.

FINAL:              FITCHBURG STATE 10, MASSACHUSETTS MARITIME 7

FITCHBURG, Mass. --  Senior Kayla Panek (Belchertown, Mass.) scored four goals and added three assists for seven points to lead Fitchburg State to a 10-7 Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference women’s lacrosse victory over Massachusetts Maritime Saturday afternoon at Elliot Field.

The host Falcons (10-7, 4-3 MASCAC) jumped out to a 4-0 lead on the strength of a pair of Panek goals midway through the first half, but the visiting Buccaneers (2-10, 1-6 MASCAC) used markers from senior Ashley Solari (Sandwich, Mass.) and junior Stephanie Hunt (Brookfield, Conn.) to close back to within two at the break.  Solari’s free position conversion 4:49 after intermission sliced Massachusetts Maritime’s deficit to 4-3, but tallies by Panek and freshman Tracy Long (Georgetown, Mass.) in a 19 second span extended Fitchburg State’s edge to 6-3 with 21:48 remaining.  Goals by Hunt and freshman Cammi Balentine (Haverhill, Mass.) in just over three minutes enabled the Buccaneers to close back to within one once again at 6-5 with 18:13 to play, and after the teams traded scores, Fitchburg State netted three unanswered markers to take a 10-6 lead on Panek’s final tally of the day with 4:42 remaining and ice its triumph.

Senior Ali Laferriere (Tyngsboro, Mass.) and sophomore Anna Gagnon-Burch (Putney, Vt.) netted a goal and an assist each in the win for the Falcons, who also received tallies from senior Andrea Comeau (Watertown, Mass.), sophomore Molly Richard (Leominster, Mass.) and freshman Rebecca Fisher (Dracut, Mass.) as well as an assist from junior Lia Crutchfield (East Longmeadow, Mass.).  Solari and Hunt notched a pair of goals and assist to finish with three points each in the setback for Massachusetts Maritime, which also collected markers off the sticks of seniors Dahlia Seggelin (Sharon, Mass.) and Stephanie O’Connor (Westwood, Mass.).

Sophomore Marguerite Belcher (Quincy, Mass.) picked up the win in goal for Fitchburg State with a 10-save effort, while junior Mikayla Correia (Dartmouth, Mass.) made a career-high 21 stops in net in the setback for Massachusetts Maritime.  The Falcons outshot the Buccaneers by a 33-19 margin overall (31-17 on goal) and held a 12-7 edge in draw controls for the contest.

Fitchburg State is seeded fourth in next week’s Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference championships and will host fifth-seeded Salem State in quarterfinal round action on Tuesday evening at Elliot Field beginning at 7:00 p.m.  Today’s match marked the season finale for Massachusetts Maritime.