Box Score
MANSFIELD, Conn. – Senior Alexa Vizzini (Vernon, NJ) moved into sixth place all-time in career points with five goals and two assists and also won six draws to lead the Eastern Connecticut State University women's lacrosse team to a 17-7 non-conference win over the University of Saint Joseph in its home-opener Wednesday afternoon at Rick McCarthy Field.

Vizzini, a three-time first-team All-Little East Conference attack, scored three times in the first 16 minutes and finished the half with four goals (two man-up), two assists and two draws to help stake Eastern (1-2) to an 8-3 halftime lead.

With ten points (7 goals, 3 assists) this year, Vizzini moved from eighth place into sixth place all-time with 209 points, one ahead of Paige Schneider (2014-17) and three points shy of fourth place all-time. In the season-opener Feb. 21 at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, Vizzini became the eighth player in program history with as many as 200 career points when she recorded the team's first goal of the season.

As the only two newcomers in the starting lineup, first-year sophomore transfer attack Ella Huard (Southington) and freshman Molly Page (Waterford) were both credited with their first career goals. Page had three goals and two assists and Huard two goals and two assists.

Page gave Eastern the lead for good, 2-1, nine minutes into play with an unassisted strike for her first career point while Huard's first career point opened the scoring in the second half that made it 9-3 1:23 into the session. Page and Huard hooked up five minutes into the second half that made it 13-4, Page's third goal coming in a man-up situation on the first of Huard's  two assists in the match.

Sophomore attack Hannah Seltzer (Westerly, RI)  matched Vizzini with five goals – her first five of the season which give her 30 in 28 career games -- two coming consecutively 37 seconds apart on Vizzini's helpers late in the second quarter. Graduate student Emma Oliano (Wallingford) handed out three assists, all three coming in the second half.

Sophomore goalie Maizie Rukat (Peru, VT) made a career-high 14 saves to record her tenth win in 17 career decisions. Half of her saves came in the fourth quarter when Saint Joseph (1-3) unloaded 11 of its game total of 25 shots.

Seven Eastern players corralled two or more ground balls, with Huard, Seltzer, Vizzini, and Rukat all credited with three. Vizzini and junior defender Grace Saldaña (Colchester) were also credited with causing three turnovers each.

The Blue Jays got four goals from freshman season scoring leader Kailey Krusewski, with senior Alana Picard contributing two assists, a goal, six ground ball, six draw controls and three caused turnovers.

 Eastern visits SCAD-Savannah Monday in a non-conference match at 11 a.m. before opening its Little East season March 22 at Plymouth State University at noon. The Panthers eliminated the Warriors in last year's LEC playoff semifinals, 14-11, at Panther Field.