May 16, 2009

Box Score

Salem, VA - The Adelphi University women's lacrosse team traveled to Roanoke, Virginia to take on the second seed from the North Region, C.W. Post in the NCAA Division II Final Four on Saturday, May 16 on the campus of Roanoke College. Senior Rachel Ray set two NCAA records, most assists in a NCAA tournament game and most assists in a tournament with eight, helping lead the Panthers to a 15-10 victory over the Pioneers. With the win Adelphi remains spotless at 17-0 and advances to the NCAA National Title game on Sunday, May 17.

C.W. Post struck first, finding the back of the Panther net just 14 seconds into the action, however Adelphi did not waste much time responding as Erica Devito scored on a free position goal just 1:24 later. C.W. Post answered back to take a 2-1 lead, but the Panthers ripped off three straight goals over the next nine minutes as Kaitlyn Carter, Vanessa Sotcheff and Devito beat Pioneer goalie Sam Powers to give Adelphi a 4-2 lead 13:30 into play.

The Pioneers and Adelphi would trade goals before C.W. Post closed reeled off three goals of their own to lay claim to a slim 6-5 lead. The Panthers got the last word in the first half as Carter evened the game at six off of a Rachel Ray assist, with just 2:20 left in play. No one could gain the upper hand in the final two minutes and the game was deadlocked at six at the half.

"I felt like C.W. Post was getting good looks in the first half, so we had some concerns," Head Coach Joe Spallina said. "But we wanted to play offense with more urgency and I thought we did a much better job of that in the second half."

Adelphi came out of halftime firing, as Carter and Michelle Ceraso teamed to rip off three straight Panther goals, making the score 9-6 just over seven minutes into the second frame. But, the Pioneers answered right back, netted two quick tallies to cut the margin to just one goal, 9-8.

Devito notched another goal, 11 minutes into the action to push the Panther cushion back to two, but consecutive C.W. Post goals knotted the game at 10 halfway through the second period. That was as close as it would get as a Ray goal off of a Jackie Bogensberger feed in transition put Adelphi on top, 11-10 and the flood gates opened.

Adelphi would close out the game on a 5-0 run that including a goal from Holly Burke, after a four or five minute offensive possesion that swung the momentum firmly to the Panthers. Carter, Devito and Ceraso also found the back of the Pioneer goal in the final minutes of action, giving the Panthers a 15-10 victory.

"I'm extremely proud of our kids, this was more then just a national semifinal, it was our cross town rival," Spallina explained. "But I thought we played with a lot of composure and poise in a game that could have gone either way at times."

The Panthers held a clear edge in shots, 43-27, while fouls (22-27), ground balls (13-14) and draw controls (13-14), were all close. Carter and Devito each scored five goals, while Ceraso added two in the win. Caitlin Fitzpatrick made seven saves in net for Adelphi.

Adelphi will take the field in the NCAA Division II National Championship game on Sunday, May 17 at noon, looking to become the first team in Division II women's lacrosse with three national titles.