BOSTON – Thanks to tough defense throughout the night and a gradual improvement of the offensive attack, Regis College began the 2024 season with a 13-2 victory over Wentworth Thursday in a non-conference women's lacrosse match at Sweeney Field.
Despite being a player down, Regis was able to strike first four-and-a-half minutes into the match as Hope Alto (Boston, Mass.) scored her first goal as a member of the Pride off an assist from Audrey Mason (West Springfield, Mass.) for her first career point. Just over one minute later, Kylee Marley (Westerly, R.I.) converted a free position attempt to give the Pride a 2-0 advantage.
The Pride doubled their lead in the span of 32 seconds when Madeline Conover (West Newbury, Mass.) first set up Alto's second goal of the night and then earned her own goal off an assist from Marley. Alto would complete her hat trick with 2:45 remaining in the first quarter thanks to another assist from Conover, increasing the Regis lead to 5-0.
Wentworth (0-1) finally got on the board with 17 seconds left in the first quarter as Olivia Schultz converted a free position attempt. However, Regis continually gained possession throughout the second period as it scored five goals, three of them coming from Alto, to bring a 10-1 lead into halftime.
Just 22 seconds into the third quarter, Marley scored to create the 10-goal margin that brings about the running clock, a situation that remained the rest of the match. Marley scored two more goals in the fourth quarter while Camille Pollak converted a free position attempt for the Leopards.
Alto finished with six goals and seven draw controls, while Marley collected four goals, four assists, and five ground balls. Vanessa Kozinski (Merrimack, N.H.) led the Regis defense with four caused turnovers as Daniela Mazo (Bridgeport, Conn.) earned the win in goal after playing the first half while Allayna Martone (Elkridge, Md.) made eight saves in the second half.
Regis College (1-0) heads to Buzzards Bay, Mass., to face Massachusetts Maritime Academy next Wednesday, Feb. 28, starting at 5 p.m.