Blue Lacrosse Edges Emerson on Senior Day

WELLESLEY, Mass. -- The Wellesley College lacrosse team used a 12-10 edge to top visiting Emerson College in NEWMAC women's lacrosse action on Saturday afternoon. Before the game, Wellesley celebrated senior day, honoring the three members of the Class of 2014, Tori Hysko, Kaitlyn Kirkaldy, and Brit Mscisz.

The win improves the Blue to 5-8 overall, 2-3 in the NEWMAC, while Emerson dips to 7-6, 1-4 in conference play.

In a tight game that featured eight ties and five lead changes, it was the Blue that surged at the end, scoring four of the contest's final five goals to earn the win. 

Wellesley jumped out to a 3-0 lead, using goals from Mary Lemay, Nikki Sharkin, and Mscisz giving the Blue an edge that held up until just under six to play in the half. 

Trailing 3-0, Emerson struck for a run of five unanswered goals in four minutes to go up 5-3. Kate Lemire scored three times for the Lions during the surge, while Kanika Musra and Guerin Morisette also struck for goals.

Wellesley cut the lead to one, with a Mscisz score in the final minute of the stanza, but Emerson held a 5-4 edge going into the break.

The Blue wasted little time re-gaining the lead in the second, using back-to-back goals from Mscisz and Lemay to take a 6-5 lead with 27:34 to play.

Again, Emerson answered back, using a 3-1 scoring run over the next eight minutes of play to build an 8-7 edge. Tayllar Righini scored twice for the Lions during the run, while Lemire added her fourth goal of the contest.

Wellesley tied the game at 8-8 with a Sharkin score at 15:43, but again Emerson answered. Lemire connected for her fourth goal of the game to give the visitors a 9-8 lead with 14:47 to play.

The final 14 minutes of play belonged to Wellesley, as the Blue scored four of the game's final five goals, turning a 9-8 deficit into a 12-10 lead. Chesley Hooker tied the game at 9-9 at 14:00, while Sharkin added a score at 11:34 to make it 10-9. Emerson's Meredith Weber then tied the game at 10-10 with a strike at 8:57.

With the game knotted at 10-10, Wellesley grabbed momentum with a Sharkin free position score at 7:40 to go up 11-10. Blue keeper Wendy Nettleton then turned away a pair of shots from Emerson that would have tied the contest.

Up a goal with possession, the Blue stalled until a Courtney Peterson goal with 21 seconds on the clock made it 12-10. Sharkin won the ensuing draw but Emerson recovered the ball after a Wellesley turnover. The Lions ran out of time, however, as the 12-10 score stood in the Blue's favor.

Wellesley finished with a 16-9 edge in draw controls, largely due to a 13-1 advantage in the second half. Shots were 24-22 in Wellesley's favor, and each team grabbed eight total saves.

Sharkin led Wellesley with four goals, while Mscisz also finished with four points (three goals, one assist). Lemay picked up two scores, while Meghan Peterson added a goal and two assists. Courtney Peterson and Hooker rounded out the Blue scoring with solo goals, while Claire Canty added two assists. 

Sharkin (6), Canty (5) and Meghan Peterson (4) combined for 15 of the Blue's 16 draw controls. Defensively, Kirkaldy and Meghan Peterson each caused two turnovers, while Peterson added a team-high five ground balls. In goal, Hysko got the start and made six saves, while Nettleton finished with two.

For Emerson, Lemire recorded a game-high six points on five goals and one assist, while Righini added two scores and one helper. Weber and Misra each tallied a goal and an assist, while Morisette rounded out the Lions offense with one goal. Weber caused a team-high three turnovers, while scooping three ground balls and adding four draw controls. Rounding out the Emerson box score, Victoria Kanaris made eight saves with five ground balls. 

Both teams will continue NEWMAC play on Tuesday. Wellesley will play host to Babson at 4:30pm, while Emerson welcomes MIT for a 6:00pm game.