Western New England Drops Season Opener to Springfield College, 17-1

Miller scores first collegiate goal, adds five draw controls for Golden Bears

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (February 24, 2018) – The Western New England University women's lacrosse team dropped its season opener to crosstown rival Springfield College, 17-1, on Saturday afternoon at Golden Bear Stadium. 

Top Performers
• Western New England freshman Reilly Miller (Goshen, N.Y.) scored her first collegiate goal and also collected a game-high five draw controls for the Golden Bears.
• Sophomore defender Olivia Truenow (Franklin, Mass.) picked up four ground balls and caused a pair of turnovers.

• Senior Shelby Corsano (Bourne, Mass.) led the Springfield offense with six points (three goals, three assists), four draw controls and two ground balls.
• Senior Kayla Schroeher (Riverhead, N.Y.) also posted a six-point effort (two goals, four assists) for the Pride, while classmate Ann Mahoney (Saratoga Springs, N.Y.) finished with four goals, one assist, three ground balls, two draw controls, and two caused turnovers.

Game Review
Western New England got off to a strong start, as Miller secured the game's opening draw before scoring her first collegiate goal just over two minutes into the contest.

Springfield equalized at the 24:05 mark when Schroeher found senior midfielder Kristen Steidler (Somers, Conn.), and the Pride pulled ahead for good with 20:56 left in the first half on a free position goal by Corsano.

Corsano made it 3-1 with her second goal of the game on a feed from Schroeher 2:10 later. The visitors would tack on five additional goals over the final ten minutes of the half to establish an 8-1 advantage at the break.

Springfield picked up right where it left off in the second half, as the Pride tallied nine goals over the final 30 minutes of play while using strong defense to keep the Golden Bears off the scoreboard.

Notes
• Springfield was successful on 20-of-22 clear attempts, while the Golden Bears went 11-of-25.
• Western New England senior goalie Shannon McFadden (West Islip, N.Y.) made nine saves in just under 50 minutes of action. Springfield sophomore Brenna Keefe (Acton, Mass.) finished with four stops on five shots.
• The Pride outshot the Golden Bears 36-10 and won the ground ball battle 35-24.

Up Next
Western New England (0-1) returns to action on Thursday, as the Golden Bears host Smith College at 4 p.m. Springfield (1-0) welcomes Eastern Connecticut for its home opener next Wednesday.