NEWBURGH, N.Y. – Behind seven goals by sophomore attacker
Katie Gattoni (Old Tappan, N.J.), the Mount Saint Mary College women's lacrosse team (4-4, 2-0 Skyline) unseated previously undefeated Purchase College (7-1, 2-1 Skyline) from the top spot in the Skyline Conference with a 14-11 victory Thursday evening at Kaplan Field.
Gattoni totaled eight points with seven goals and an assist in the win. After the Knights went down 1-0 in the second minute of the game, Gattoni accounted for the next five goals across 11 minutes. Despite missing one game due to injury, Gattoni now has 33 goals and 38 points through seven games this season. Her seven goals matched a career-high.
After Gattoni scored five straight goals, junior attacker
Jen Gries (Hicksville, N.Y.) scored the next two, followed by junior defender
Claire Duffy's (Monroe, N.Y.) first of the game to put the Knights up, 8-1. Kelly Turtell scored for Purchase with 7:26 left in the first half, ending the Knights' eight-goal run and the Panthers' 21-minute scoring drought. Sophomore midfielder
Kayla Goman (Greenwich, N.Y.) scored her 14th of the year with 1:17 left in the half, but Madi Smith got one back for Purchase with just 35 seconds left to send the game to halftime with the Knights leading, 9-3.
Smith scored again to open the second half, followed by a score by Amber Brisacone to cut the deficit to four. Duffy scored again to get the Knights back out to a five-goal advantage, but the Skyline's leading scorer Zoe Hines scored her only goal of the game just 12 seconds later to cut it back to four. Gattoni picked up her sixth of the game at the 24:10 mark in the second frame, then sophomore defender
Amanda Clemens (Baldwin, N.Y.) tallied her third of the year to give the Knights a 12-6 lead.
Purchase made its largest run of the game with just under 19 minutes remaining in the game. Samantha Rich scored off a feed from Brisacone at 18:32 before Duffy tallied her third. Rich then scored two in a row, followed by two more by Turtell to cut the Knight lead to two at 13-11 with 3:29 to play. Gattoni made sure the Panthers could not get back in the game, scoring her seventh with 2:50 left to give the Knights a safe three-goal lead.
Freshman goalkeeper
Carly Lennon (Bellmore, N.Y.) improved to 3-3 with the win, making seven saves in the process. Purchase netminder Caitlin Sosa suffered her first loss of the year, allowing 14 goals and making eight stops.
Duffy had her fourth straight multi-goal game with three more in Thursday's win, adding an assist for a four-point game. She also led all players with six draw controls, and added a team-high four ground balls. Gries doubled her season total to four goals with two more in just her second game of the season.
Rich led the Panthers with five points on three goals and two helpers on Thursday, as well as a game-high five ground balls. Turtell netted three with a pair of caused turnovers. Brisacone scored twice and assisted another for three points.
Purchase held a slim 26-24 lead in shots on Thursday, but the Knights put 22 on goal, while the Panthers hit their target 18 times. The Knights scooped up 22 ground balls compared to 16 for Purchase. The Knights also held a 17-10 advantage in draw controls.
The Knights get back to work on Monday, April 6, with a non-conference matchup against Hartwick College. The game is set to begin at 7 p.m. at Kaplan Field.
Follow the Knights on Twitter at
@MSMCKnights and the women's lacrosse team at
@MSMC_WLax
