Rochester, N.Y. – For the third straight season the Roberts Wesleyan women's lacrosse team is headed to the East Coast Conference championship game after taking down No. 3 Molloy in the semifinals, 13-7.
Nearly two weeks ago the Redhawks battled Molloy in a triple overtime thriller that ended in a 13-12 Roberts win to help secure the second seed in the ECC Championships. But on Thursday, the Redhawks dominated the Lions on the home turf to advance to the next round.
"We came in mentally prepared for this game," said head coach Kristin Paolini. "The ladies were locked in all week and worked hard through the game plan we put in place to give us the best chance to win. We knew Molloy was going to give us a run, but I'm proud of the effort and focus our team had to get us this win."
Roberts used a balanced offensive attack to keep the Molloy defense on their heels. Four different players for the Redhawks scored three goals each. Alexis Grant, Kadie Tierney, Sophia Podszebka, and Tori Lammes all found the back of the net three times. Annie Mulhall also provided a goal.
After going down 2-1 in the first quarter, the Redhawks scored five straight goals to take a controlling 6-2 advantage and at the half Roberts held a 6-3 lead.
Roberts' defense had their hands full trying to contain two of the best offensive threats in the ECC and the Redhawks were up for the task. Roberts forced 13 turnovers and scooped up 24 ground balls while holding the Lions, who average over 15 goals per game to just seven in the contest.
Graduate student Natalie Arieno made eight saves in net and added two caused turnovers and five ground balls.
Roberts (12-5) will head to No. 1 Mercy on Sunday for the ECC title game. The Redhawks look to avenge their 11-8 loss to Mercy back in March.
Provided by the Roberts Wesleyan Sports Information Department.
