Brookville, N.Y. - The top-ranked Adelphi University women's lacrosse team used a strong defensive effort to force the host Pioneers of LIU Post into 18 turnovers this afternoon and collect a 4-3 victory over the fourth-ranked team in the IWLCA Division II rankings. With the win, the Brown and Gold remain unbeaten at 8-0 overall, while LIU-Post falls to 7-2.
Nicki Stanco led the defensive effort with two caused turnovers in her second career start, while
Ryley Weber,
Jacqueline Jahelka and
Rachel Aitkens were credited with one apiece.
Michele Scannell and Weber grabbed a combined four of Adelphi's five draw controls, and Weber also led the team in ground balls with four.
Scannell led the offensive with a game-high two goals, while
Kate Beier and
Rachel O'Brien added one goal each. Only two other Panthers were credited with a point, as both Jahekla and
Danielle Montano earned an assist.
Taylor Hayes had a strong game in net for Adelphi, collecting her eighth straight win and making five stops, including one as time expired to keep the Panthers on top.
Adelphi kicked things off fast, scoring back-to-back goals courtesy of O'Brien and Scannell in the opening half. O'Brien scored the first goal of the game just 4:19 into the contest and Scannell followed with a goal of her own just 80 seconds later to make it a 2-0 edge. Just over four minutes later, the Pioneers cut the Panther margin in half, 2-1, off an effort from Emily Delaney. After 20 more minutes of action in the first half the score remained the same at 2-1.
LIU Post struck first in the second half, scoring 2:18 after the initial whistle to tie the game at 2-2. Shortly after, however, Scannell responded again for Adelphi, putting a ripple in the back of the Pioneer net with 23:23 left in the contest. After over 10 minutes of up and down play without a goal, Adelphi struck again, this time off the stick of Beier, who was fed by Montano, for the Panthers' fourth goal.
Six minutes later the hosts made things interesting, scoring with 3:22 left to pull within one goal, 4-3. In the final minutes, Adelphi had several chances on net, but were turned away and the Pioneers took a shot as time expired that was turned away by Hayes to preserve the Panther win.
Adelphi returns to action on Tuesday, April 5 when they welcome Pace University to Garden City for a 6:00 pm Northeast-10 contest.
NOTES
- The last time that Adelphi was held to single digits was in the 2015 NCAA Division II National Championship, a 5-4 overtime win over Lock Haven.
- The last non-conference loss for the Panthers was a 7-6 defeat to LIU Post in the 2013 NCAA Division II National Semifinals.
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Michele Scannell has three multi-goal games this season, with two of them coming in the past two games.
About Adelphi Athletics:
Adelphi University joined the Northeast-10 Conference in the fall of 2009 and in the past six seasons has collected 16 regular season conference titles, 21 tournament championships, 27 individual crowns and captured the Northeast-10 President's Cup twice (2013 and 2014), while winning five NCAA Division II National Championships.
For the latest on Adelphi University Athletics, follow the Panthers at www.aupanthers.com or via social media on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, and Snapchat.
