SECOND HALF RALLY LIFTS DOWLING OVER WOMEN’S LACROSSE IN ECC OPENER, 13-11

Box Score vs. Dowling - April 8, 2009

BROOKHAVEN, N.Y. (Apr. 8, 2009) – Trailing 11-8 with just under 12 minutes remaining in regulation, Dowling College closed out the game with five unanswered tallies to beat the Molloy College women’s lacrosse team by a 13-11 count at Golden Lions’ Field in Brookhaven, N.Y. With Wednesday's decision, the Lions lost their first East Coast Conference match-up of the 2009 season, and fell to 4-6 overall. As for the Golden Lions, they improved to a ledger of 6-2. Dowling is also 2-0 against league opposition.

Graduate midfielder Allison Smith (Port Jefferson, N.Y.) sparked things with a free-position goal at the 11:40 mark. After that, the Golden Lions picked up four unassisted tallies. Sophomore midfielder Cassandra Cronin (Islip Terrace, N.Y.) had the equalizer with 7:24 left, while senior midfielder Lauren Marra (New Hyde Park, N.Y.) notched the go-ahead goal less than a minute later. Senior midfielder Stephanie Cotter (Ridge, N.Y.) added an insurance marker with 0:06 left to put any chance of a comeback away for good.

Five minutes into the opening stanza, Molloy earned four consecutive markers to grab an early 4-0 lead. Junior attacker Lori Sollitto (Wantagh, N.Y.) accumulated a hat trick in that span. Senior attacker Erin Brady (Long Beach, N.Y.) found the back of the cage as well. Dowling responded by posting three of the next four markers to cut the deficit to 5-3. Cronin began and ended the spurt with a goal. Marra contributed a tally as well at the 13:23 juncture on an unassisted effort.

Down 8-6 with 30 seconds to go in the half, the Golden Lions diminished the shortfall to one (8-7) on a goal by sophomore midfielder Kelly Cefalu (East Islip, N.Y.), which proved to be the halftime score. Cronin recorded six goals on the evening, while Sollitto collected a team-best four tallies for the Lions.

Junior attacker Rebecca LaFlare (Lindenhurst, N.Y.) and Brady had three and two markers, respectively. Junior midfielder Kristie Sosnowski (Massapequa Park, N.Y.) totaled 16 draws. Senior goalie Alicia Frisch (Lindenhurst, N.Y.) made a game-high nine saves.

Cronin won five ground balls and caused four turnovers for Dowling. Marra and Smith posted two goals apiece. Marra also amassed two ground balls, two draw controls and one caused turnover. In addition to her one goal, Cefalu notched two caused turnovers, two ground balls and one draw. Cotter attempted five shots (four SOG) and raked one caused turnover. Junior defender Brianna Falese (Centereach, N.Y.) registered two ground balls and one draw control. Sophomore goaltender Rachel Goldstein (Ridge, N.Y.) had seven saves.

Overall, Molloy owned a 28-26 edge in shots and an 18-8 advantage in draws, while Dowling held a 19-9 margin in ground balls. In clear attempts, the Golden Lions were a perfect 11-for-11 (100.0 percent). On the other hand, the Lions registered a clear percentage of 81.8 (9-for-11). Molloy and Dowling were both 50/50 in free-position attempts. The Golden Lions were 4-of-8 from inside eight meters, while the Lions connected on one of two.

Head Coach Tom Campolettano and his squad return to action this Friday when Molloy hosts Philadelphia University at the Dean G. Skelos Sports Complex in Rockville Centre, N.Y. The opening draw is slated for 4 p.m. If you are unable to make it to the game, you can follow all of the progress via Live Stats at http://livestats.prestosports.com/molloy.