Women's Lacrosse Holds on to top JWU, 15-13, in GNAC Showdown

THE BASICS 

Score:             
Johnson & Wales University, 13; Emmanuel College, 15
Records:         
Emmanuel College Saints (2-0, 2-0 GNAC)
Johnson & Wales University Wildcats (0-2, 0-1 GNAC)
Location:         
Boston, Mass. – Roberto Clemente Field
Date:               
Saturday, March 27, 2021

THE LEAD:  A strong first half performance was enough to carry host Emmanuel College past Johnson & Wales University, 15-13, Saturday afternoon in Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) women's lacrosse action at Roberto Clemente Field. The Saints led 11-5 at the break and hung on for the two-goal conference victory.

HOW IT HAPPENED  

• EC opened the action on a 7-1 flurry through the 13 minutes of play capped by three consecutive goals by senior Elizabeth Fortier (Newburyport, Mass.).
• The Wildcats scored twice to end the hot start and cut the lead to 7-3 before the Saints answered with four consecutive scores including a man-up tally by junior Jessica Borduas (Woodbury, Conn.) to give Emmanuel a comfortable 11-3 cushion.
• JWU regrouped and closed the half strong with scores by Dani Lydecker (Valley Cottage, N.Y.) and Kayla Datys (Warwick, N.Y.) over the final two minutes to make it a six-goal game (11-5) at the break.
• EC sophomore Megan Steele (Auburn, Maine) paced the Saints with three goals and one assist in the opening stanza.
• Johnson & Wales carried that momentum into the second half, opening play with two quick goals to cut the deficit to 11-7 with 24:17 left in the half.
• Emmanuel appeared to have the game in hand with a 3-1 scoring spurt to rebuild the lead to 14-8 with 13 minutes to but the Wildcats found life to make it a fun finish.
• Lydecker opened a 5-0 JWU run with a man-up marker with 12:39 to play before Datys and Marley Medina (South Hadley, Mass.) got into the scoring mix, making it 14-11 with 7:47 left.
• The Saints didn't make it easy for themselves, committing several yellow-card penalties down the stretch to creating man-up chances for the Wildcats. Lydecker netted a man-up tally with 6:24 to play to cut the lead to 14-12 before Datys made it a one-goal game at 14-13 with JWU's fourth man-up goal of the half with 2:58 to play.
• The Wildcats had the ball with less than a minute to play and chance to even the score but a great defensive interception by sophomore Alyssa Santangeli (Watertown, Conn.) helped EC clear the ball which led to an insurance goal by junior Chandra Franca () to seal the game at 15-13 with 31 seconds on the clock.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS 

• EC sophomore goalie Emma Crowley (Peterborough, N.H.) made 12 saves to earn the win and improve to 2-0 on the year while JWU goalie, also Emma Crowley (Leicester, Mass.) ,made 11 saves and falls to 0-2.
• Steele capped the day with five points on four goals and one helper to lead the EC offensive charge.
• Lydecker finished the day with a game-high eight points on six goals and two assists while Datys added four points on three goals and one helper.
• The win snaps a six-game losing skid to Johnson & Wales for Emmanuel who is now 2-6 all-time against JWU
• The victory was the first Head Coaching win at Roberto Clemente Field for EC second-year Head Coach Liz Maloney who didn't get a chance to coach a game last year during the pandemic-shortened season.

UP NEXT

• Both teams are back in action on Wednesday, March 31. Emmanuel hits the road to take on Anna Maria College in GNAC action at 6:00 PM in Paxton, Mass. while Johnson & Wales heads to Newton, Mass. to face Lasell University in GNAC play scheduled to begin at 4:00 PM.