NEWBURGH, N.Y. – After scoring 44 goals in her rookie season, sophomore attacker
Katie Gattoni (Old Tappan, N.J.) made her intentions to surpass that total very clear in the Mount Saint Mary College women's lacrosse team's (1-0) season opener, as she netted seven goals to lead the Knights to a 14-10 non-conference victory over Ramapo College (0-1) Saturday at Kaplan Field.
Gattoni's seven scores exceeded her previous career-high of six, which she accomplished twice in 2014. She scored all of the Knights' first three goals, and totaled four in the first half. She added three more in the second half to help the Knights hold on to their lead late in the game.
Gattoni and Ramapo's Beth McGraw traded goals just 14 seconds apart in the fifth minute of the game. Gattoni got the upper hand with her second goal at 24:10, but Lindsay Hughes tied the game for the Roadrunners just 13 seconds later after taking the draw control all the way to the net. Gattoni secured the hat trick with 19:56 remaining in the first half, giving the Knights a 3-2 lead.
As hard as she may have tried, Gattoni could not be the only Knight to score on Saturday. Sophomore midfielder
Kayla Goman (Greenwich, N.Y.) tallied her first of the game at the 13:17 mark to put the Knights up a pair. Alyssa Tachon converted 35 seconds later to get the visitors back within a score, but Gattoni was at it again with her fourth of the game with 9:04 remaining until halftime.
Freshman midfielder
Christina Ryan (Franklin Square, N.Y.) scored her first career goal just two minutes later, and then sophomore attacker
Shannon McGuinness (Oceanside, N.Y.) netted her first of the year with 5:02 left. Hughes scored for the second time with 34 seconds remaining, but the Knights took a 7-4 advantage into the break. None of the Knights' seven goals were assisted in the first half.
Hughes completed her hat trick less than two minutes into the second frame, but Gattoni and sophomore defender
Amanda Clemens (Baldwin, N.Y.) tallied the next two to put the Knights up by four. Ramapo got two back out of the crosses of Katie Duca and McGraw, but Goman and McGuinness each hit the back of the net for a second time to leave the Knights up, 11-7, with 12:24 to play.
Tachon picked up her second goal at the 8:24 mark, but Gattoni quickly added her final two of the game to give the Knights a comfortable five-goal lead with about six minutes remaining. Junior midfielder
Nicole Scicutella (Massapequa, N.Y.) got in on the action with a goal at the 1:40 point in the second half, but Ramapo closed out with two scores in the final 1:11. The time ran out before Ramapo could take advantage of the momentum swing, giving the Knights a four-goal win.
Goman and McGuinness each scored twice, and Ryan matched their two points with a goal and an assist. Gattoni and junior defender
Claire Duffy (Monroe, N.Y.) matched for a team-high two caused turnovers. Four different Knights tied for the team lead with two draw controls on the afternoon.
Freshman goalkeeper
Emily Carboine (Hauppauge, N.Y.) earned her first career win after making six stops on Saturday. She also led the Knights with four ground balls. Monica Bubello shouldered the loss for the Roadrunners after allowing seven goals in the first half. Jessica Meyers took over in the second stanza, and matched the starter with another seven scores allowed. They combined for seven total saves.
The Knights outshot their guests, 27-19, including an advantage of 21-16 in shots on goal. The Knights picked up 22 ground balls, while the Roadrunners scooped up 21. The home team succeeded on 14-of-19 clear attempts, while Ramapo only managed to complete 9-of-17.
The Knights will head down to Clermont, Fla. on Sunday for their Spring Break trip. They will take on Kenyon College at 6 p.m. on Monday, Mar. 2, and then Saint Vincent College with an early 9 a.m. start on Thursday, Mar. 5.
Follow the Knights on Twitter at
@MSMCKnights and the women's lacrosse team at
@MSMC_WLax
