WESTON, Mass. - For the second straight match, Regis College attempted to rally from an early deficit, but Saint Joseph's College was able to score at key times to hold off the Pride and emerge victorious, 12-8, Tuesday night in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) women's lacrosse match at Regis Stadium.
The Monks struck first less than a minute-and-a-half into the match as Taylor Dumond scored off an assist from Celia Melanson. The Pride quickly answered just over a minute later as Maddey Strickland (Hopkinton, Mass.) found Audrey Mason (West Springfield, Mass.) in front of the net for the game-tying goal.
Saint Joseph's took control with four unanswered goals by four different players, capped by a goal from Carson Battaglia with 14 seconds left in the first quarter. Mason converted a free position attempt early in the second quarter, but Dinah Wadleigh would score just over a minute later, and then Battaglia picked up her second goal of the night with 2:23 left in the first half to give the Monks their largest lead of the night at 7-2.
The Pride battled back, starting with free position goals by Hope Alto (Boston, Mass.) and Mason 26 seconds apart to bring Regis within three goals at 7-4 heading into halftime. On the opening draw control of the second half, Mason corralled the ball, raced down the field, and found Alto for her second goal of the night to cut the Pride deficit to 7-5 11 seconds into the third quarter.
Mason would earn her fourth goal of the match to bring Regis within one at 7-6, but Bridget Collins would set up both Wadleigh and Lydia Hill to extend the Monk lead back to three goals at 9-6. Battaglia again struck in the final minute of a quarter, scoring with 50 seconds remaining in the third period to give Saint Joseph's a 10-6 advantage heading into the fourth quarter.
Just under five minutes into the fourth quarter, Molly Higgins (Weymouth, Mass.) scooped up a rebound and found the back of the net, and then she would score another goal off an assist from Madeline Conover (West Newbury, Mass.) to bring the Pride back within two goals at 10-8. However, the Monks put the match away when Collins found Battaglia on consecutive goals 71 seconds apart.
Mason led the Pride with her second four-goal effort over the past eight days. Alto scored twice and collected 11 draw controls, breaking the Regis single-season record for draw controls that stood for 11 years. Allayna Martone (Elkridge, Md.) started in net for the Pride and made seven saves, while Daniela Mazo (Bridgeport, Conn.) played the second half and ended up with five saves.
Battaglia led the Monks with five goals, five groundballs, and three draw controls, while Collins dished out five assists. Defensively, Madison Scott led the way with three caused turnovers along with four groundballs. Alexis Eldridge started in net and made one save before Morgan Wright took over for the second half and was credited with four saves.
Regis College (8-6, 4-5 GNAC) hosts Dean College Saturday, April 20, starting at 3 p.m., with the Senior Day presentation to take place beforehand. Saint Joseph's College (11-3, 7-1 GNAC) hosts Johnson and Wales Thursday, April 18, beginning at 5 p.m.