MORRISVILLE, N.Y. – Visiting SUNY Potsdam posted the final tally of the day in the closing minutes of the contest and held off the offensive persistence of the hosts as they collected the 12-11 non-conference victory over Morrisville State College women's lacrosse Saturday on Drake Field in Morrisville.
The loss drops the Mustangs to 0-5 on the season, while Potsdam pulls even at 3-3.
Gianna Branca (Camillus, N.Y.) had a seven point outing for the hosts, scoring five while assisting two others, with fellow attack Chelsea McNeal (Ithaca, N.Y.) collecting a hat trick with three scores.
Courtney Cavellier (Rodman, N.Y.) posted two goals to go along with Makenzi Santini's (Fairport, N.Y.) one goal and one assist.
Sara Gelster (Hamburg, N.Y.) posted six stops in the loss in net, three in each period of action.
Potsdam had seven post goals on the day, including Rachael Huntley who notched three to go along with two assists.
Morrisville State collected a game total 20 ground balls and nine draws, with Cavellier registering six pick ups off the ground adding five draws to her tallies.
Potsdam rattled off two quick scores in the opening two minutes of the contest, before three straight gave the Mustangs the 3-2 lead a mere nine minutes in. Cavellier notched the first of the afternoon on a free position at 26:17, before Branca rolled crease and added another at 22:14.
Just over a minute later, Santini connected with McNeal on the cut across the eight.
Potsdam and Morrisville State exchanged scores for the remainder of the opening period, each posting two at a time, including back-to-back tallies by Branca on free positions in the final two minutes of the half to give the hosts the 7-6 edge at the break.
In the second half, Potsdam pulled even 29 seconds in on an unassisted goal by Lane Perl, but Branca responded with her fifth of the contest to regain the one goal advantage for the Mustangs.
After trading goals for the next 10 minutes of the second, Potsdam collected two straight, both off the stick of Alexa Ferrer, to claim their first lead of the second half, 10-9 with 7:36 to go.
Santini tied it for Morrisville State with a free position score at 5;50, their fourth of the afternoon, but once again the Bears countered to regain the one goal lead at 4:44 off an Alli Stark goal.
McNeal posted her third of the day at 4:05, going the length of the field to even it at 11, but the final dagger was served at 2:13 as Huntley collected the game winner off a Mustang turnover to give the Bears the 12-11 win.
Morrisville State had an opportunity to even the game with under two to go, but the shot sailed wide, and Potsdam was able to maintain possession in their offensive end for the remainder of the contest.
The Mustangs return to the field Wednesday, hosting Utica College at 4 p.m. on Drake Field in Morrisville.
Morrisville State College's curricula are enriched with applied learning and pave the way for opportunity at both the Morrisville and Norwich campuses. An action-oriented, interactive learning lab, the college is a national leader in technology and has been lauded for its exemplary, innovative and effective community service programs.
The college was ranked among the Best Regional Colleges in the North by U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges 2018 issue and was also recognized in the Top Public Schools, Regional Colleges North in the 2018 Best Colleges rankings. For more information about Morrisville State College, visit www.morrisville.edu.
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