Box Score MANSFIELD, Conn. – In a women's lacrosse match characterized by patient offense and stout defense, Farmingdale State College went 31 minutes between leads, but outscored Eastern Connecticut State University 5-1 over the final 19 minutes to post a 7-5 non-conference victory Saturday afternoon at the Mansfield Outdoor Complex.
In a game where the defenses forced 51 turnovers, Farmingdale (8-0) remained unbeaten this year in sending Eastern (6-3) to its second straight (home) loss by winning the first match contested between the programs.
After tying the match in the opening minutes, Eastern never trailed until the final minutes, when the Rams kept the Warriors off the board for the final ten minutes while striking three times in the final 5:23 for the tying, go-ahead and insurance goals.
Sophomore midfielder Alexandra Sparrow tied the match for Farmingdale with her tenth goal of the year with 5:23 left on a free-position goal. Eastern senior goalie Taylor Emmerson (Colchester) then kept the game knotted by saving shots by senior attack Megan Sullivan and Sparrow. At that point, the Warriors turned the ball over, and after Emmerson stopped Sparrow's ensuing bid, freshman midfielder Victoria Varone picked up the ground ball and converted her 18th goal of the year to five the Rams the lead for good, 6-5, with 2:28 left.
On two possessions attempting to slice the Farmingdale lead in half, Eastern gave the ball back to Farmingdale both times, and Sparrow made them pay by potting her second goal in four minutes to provide an insurance marker for the Rams with just over a minute left.
Sparrow, Varone and Janisha Sanchez all had two goals for Farmingdale. Sanchez, ranked fifth nationally in assists per match (3.71) also contributed two helpers. Varone won three draws and shared the game-high with five ground balls. Sophomore goalie Tori Johnston made 11 saves – needing only two when Eastern managed only two goals in the second half -- for Farmingdale for her eighth win in eight starts.
Eastern senior midfielder Paige Schneider (East Lyme) scored a pair of unassisted goals 1:24 apart, and sophomore attack Michelina Pinto (Groton) added one with nine minutes left in the first half as the Warriors kept the Rams from scoring for 21 minutes and took a 3-1 lead in the first half. Junior attack Jenna Glynn (West Granby) chipped in her only goal of the match six minutes into the second half, but Sanchez followed with her ninth and tenth of the season to help Farmingdale pull even, 4-4, with 10:22 left.
Eastern freshman attack Alyssa Powers' (Ellington) only goal of the match on a feed from Pinto pushed the Warriors back in front with ten minutes left, but on their final seven possessions, they turned the ball over five times and missed two shots, one of which was saved.
Emmerson came up with a season-high 16 saves, nine in the first half to help stake her team to a one-goal halftime lead.
The team's only multiple-goal scorer with two – giving her 31 on the season – Schneider also shared game-high honors with five ground balls. Senior defender Devyne Doran (South Kingstown, RI) led the defense with four ground balls, four caused turnovers and four draws. Schneider and junior defender Taylor Behn (Amherst, NH) both caused two turnovers.
Eastern hosts Worcester State University in a non-conference match Tuesday at 5 p.m.
