Fitchburg State Defeats Colby-Sawyer, 12-7

Laferriere nets four points for Falcons in non-conference victory

FITCHBURG, Mass. – The Fitchburg State women's lacrosse team defeated the Chargers of Colby-Sawyer, 12-7 in non-conference action this evening at Elliot Field. 

Junior Ali Laferriere paced the Falcons offense, totaling a game-best four points on three scores and one helper as well as two ground balls and one caused turnover, while sophomore Corinne DeSimone added three points on two scores and one assist to go along with  one ground ball and a caused turnover.

For Colby-Sawyer, junior Caitlyn Whearty collected three points on two markers and one helper as well as four ground balls and two draw controls, while senior Sara Berry finished with two points on one goal and one assist to go along with a game-best nine ground balls, two draw controls and six caused turnovers.

Fitchburg State opened the scoring on a pair of markers from DeSimone and Laferriere before the Chargers knotted the score at 2-2 with a pair of scores by Whearty with 24 minutes remaining in the half.

The Falcons regained the lead on a goal by junior Kayla Panek to make the score 3-2 only to have Colby-Sawyer respond with a tally from sophomore Molly Mulcahy to retie the contest at 3-3. The Green and Gold closed out the half with four straight goals as Laferriere, junior Andrea Comeau, newcomer Michelle Hennessey and sophomore Jaimee Lutz found the back of the net to make the score 7-3 going into the break.

Following the intermission, Fitchburg State upped its advantage on goals by Laferriere, DeSimone and a pair of scores from senior Brianna Dunn for the 11-3 margin. The two teams then traded scored with sophomore Nicole Lavigne scoring for the Chargers, while newcomer Nicole Lee found the back of the net for the Falcons (12-4).

Colby-Sawyer cut into the deficit, connecting on three goals in a span of 50 seconds as senior Maryalice Gurnee, Berry and Lavigne notched markers for the visitors but the Falcons defense held clamped down, resulting in the 12-7 final.

Throughout the contest, Fitchburg State held a 28-23 margin in shots, while also controlling the ground balls with a 36-32 advantage. In goal, senior Liz Darrigo turned away 14 shots for the Falcons in the complete game effort, while junior Meghan Castellano was just as impressive for Colby-Sawyer, making 14 saves of her own in 60 minutes of work.

Fitchburg State (8-4, 1-1 MASCAC) returns to action on Saturday as it hosts the Vikings of Salem State University for a contest starting at 7:30 p.m. Colby-Sawyer (6-6, 5-1 NAC) will host Norwich University on Sunday at 3:30 p.m.

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