LIU Post women’s lacrosse marches on

Thomas Scavetta

Things continue to look better for the fourth-ranked LIU Post women’s lacrosse team (7-1). They inked another pair of wins last week to extend their winning streak to six games. In the first game on Wednesday, March 23, they smothered Molloy College by a score of 16-6, in an East Coast Conference collision at LIU Post’s Bethpage Federal Credit Union Stadium in Brookville, N.Y. 

In another impressive start, the Pioneers jumped out of the gates early and took a commanding 4-0 lead in the first seven minutes of action. The stretch was capped by junior attacker Stefani Vagelatos, who scored an unassisted goal at the 23-minute mark. 

Molloy split the deficit midway through the opening stanza, but the Pioneers’ offense soared for five consecutive goals within seven minutes, to go up 9-2. Junior attacker Connor Bird led the charge, notching two scores for LIU Post. 

After leading 9-3 at the break, the Pioneers continued the offensive assault by scoring six out of the next eight goals, grabbing a comfortable 15-5 edge. The hosts never looked back, as senior attacker Emily Delaney and junior defender/midfielder Cara Douglas sealed the deal, combining for three scores in the final minutes of the contest.  

Vagelatos, Delaney and Bird racked up five points apiece. In addition, senior midfielder/defender Honey Roche won a game-high eight draws and caused one turnover. Defensively, sophomore goalkeeper Olivia Kirk was a force, rejecting seven shots, picking up four ground balls and causing a pair of turnovers.

Momentum carried over for the Pioneers as they tumbled over Holy Family University (0-8), 18-6 in a non-conference matchup at Tiger Field in Philadelphia, PA on Saturday, March 26, behind the lights of Delaney, who totaled a career-high 11 points (4 G, 7 A).

Roche had another solid outing with five points (4 G, 1 A), and freshman Ryan McKinney continued to impress, scoring three goals for the Pioneers. Tied at one with under 20 minutes remaining in the opening period, the Pioneers went on a 7-1 run to carry a 8-2 lead into the break. McKinney and junior attacker Alexis Newman scored two goals each during that juncture.

In the second half, Holy Family scored first, but it was all LIU Post from that point on. The Pioneers responded with a vengeance; closing out the game on a 10-2 run. Roche accounted for four tallies to lead the Pioneers during the latter stanza. 

The Pioneers’ balanced attack continued to shine as they held a heavy margin in shots (40-16) and caused 21 turnovers. Between the pipes, Kirk and senior goalie Kasey Kephart totaled six stops for LIU Post. For the Tigers, goalkeeper Grace Deckert made 14 saves.

Head LIU Post women’s lacrosse coach Meghan McNamara and her Pioneer squad return to action on Saturday, April 2, when they host top-ranked Adelphi University at Bethpage Federal Credit Union Stadium. With a seven-game winning streak at stake, the Pioneers look to take down the No. 1 team that is their non-conference rival. Opening draw is slated for 1 p.m.

This article was originally published in the Pioneer, the award-winning student newspaper of LIU Post, www.liupostpioneer.com, and is republished here by Blank Slate Media with the permission of the Pioneer. 

Share this Article