MANSFIELD, Conn. – The Eastern Connecticut State University women's lacrosse team scored seven unanswered goals over a span of 16 minutes to expand a two-goal lead to nine and coasted to a 20-8 non-conference victory over Mount Holyoke College in its home-opener Wednesday evening at Rick McCarthy Field.
 
Eight players chipped in a goal or assist – with seniors Caroline Stent (Weatogue) and Shay Ventresca (Oakdale) leading the way with six goals and six assists, respectively, as Eastern (1-1) improved to 7-2 all-time in the series with Mount Holyoke (1-1).
 
Eastern's defense forced 25 Mount Holyoke turnovers – outscoring the Lyons 13-3 over the 41 minutes and giving up only one goal in the fourth quarter.
 
Sophomores Emma Alford (West Hartford) and Madeline Horkey (Montville) both saw time in goal for Eastern. Alford (1-1) made all 11 of the duo's saves over the first 54 minutes, allowing seven goals. 
 
In addition to six goals, Stent won a team-high four draws. Sophomore defender Abby Parisi (Stratford) led the defense with four ground balls, two draws and a caused turnover. Sophomore midfielder Emma Oliano (Wallingford) contributed at both ends of the field with two goals, three assists, four ground balls and a draw, with senior attack Jessie Pyrek-Bennett (Monroe) chipping in three goals, an assist, three ground balls and a draw.
 
Ventresca had back-to-back assists twice in the game, setting up Stent and Pyrek-Bennett 1:23 apart to make it 10-5 midway though the second quarter and assisting senior Chloe Miller's (Avon) first goal of the season (giving her 97 points in 32 career games) and Stent's tenth goal of the season in a little over a minute early in the fourth quarter that pushed the lead to 16-7.
 
Ventresca also collected her first goal of the season five minutes into the second half and finished with seven points. First-year attack Alexa Vizzini (Vernon, NJ), who had her first career goal in the season-opener Monday night, struck for five goals (putting all eight of her shots on net, as did Pyrek-Bennett) and an assist against the Lyons, to go along with three ground balls and two draws. Vizzini scored twice in Eastern's six-goal first quarter.
 
First-year midfielder Emi Bisson had three goals for Mount Holyoke, all coming in the first quarter. Bisson, who scored half of her team's 12 goals in its opening win Thursday, and first-year midfielder Amelia Knayi evenly split 12 of their team's 15 draws and combined for seven of the Lyons' 19 ground balls.
 
Sophomore Emma Tower (1-1) stopped 13 shots for Mount Holyoke, six coming when the Warriors unloaded 11 shots in the third quarter.
 
Next week in Panama City Beach, FL, Eastern faces Vassar College Monday and Marymount University Wednesday.