Women’s lacrosse takes down UNH on the road

The Binghamton women’s lacrosse team traveled to Durham, New Hampshire to take on UNH on Saturday afternoon. Despite starting off slow, the Bearcats managed to outscore the Wildcats in every period as they cruised to a

12-7 win. The victory gave the Bearcats their second America East (AE) conference win of the season along with their fifth straight win overall. This win allowed BU to extend its streak to the longest win streak in program history.

“I thought we did a good job of challenging them in the run game upfield on those turnovers caused by our defense,” said Binghamton head coach Stephanie Allen. Binghamton (7-4, 2-0 AE) kicked off the scoring with an early bounce goal by sophomore midfielder Abigail Carroll. Not long after, the Wildcats (2-6, 1-1 AE) posted a quick response. BU then added another goal off of a passing play by junior midfielder Hayley Weltner, who sent the ball to junior midfielder Kristen Scheidel — who then found the back of the UNH net. This allowed the Bearcats to take an early 2-1 lead. Binghamton’s defense set the tone of the game early in the first quarter by clogging shooting lanes, holding the hosts to just four shots in the frame. Neither side could score for the remainder of the period, and the Bearcats headed into the second period with a 2-1 lead.

“Today our goal was to put pressure on them and force them to play more rushed than they wanted to,” Allen said. “I think our defense did a great job sticking to the game plan.”

New Hampshire knotted the score at 2-2 early in the second quarter, but Binghamton was quick with its response. The visitors added two consecutive goals courtesy of senior midfielder Isabella Meli and sophomore attack Marisa Tancredi, respectively.

Despite the hosts tacking on their third goal to cut their deficit to one, BU staged yet another run in the frame, adding three consecutive goals. Binghamton ended the half up 7-4 with a goal by sophomore attack Olivia Muscolino, and two more goals off of free attempts by Scheidel as she completed her hat trick.

“Our team is been working a lot on clock management in the offense’s end and really taking advantage of the best opportunity, and not always the first one,” Allen said.

A quick goal by Muscolino opened the second half of the game, expanding the visitors’ advantage. However, it wasn’t long before UNH responded just 30 seconds later. Another two-goal run propelled Binghamton ahead by five, making the score 10-5. Weltner added her first score of the game during the run and the Bearcats were awarded a team goal as well. The Wildcats ended the frame with their own score as BU went into the final frame with a 10-6 lead.

Senior attack Kenna Newman opened up the scoring in the final frame for both sides, adding her first goal of the game. Despite the Wildcats responding again with one of their own, Meli iced the contest with a final goal. The Bearcat defense was able to contain the Wildcats, not allowing another goal for the rest of the match. The Wildcats found themselves too far behind at this point, going scoreless for the final three minutes of action as Binghamton secured the victory 12-7.

Meli had a four-point day, which included two goals and two assists. In addition, Scheidel managed a hat trick, with Muscolino adding two goals of her own in the decisive victory.

BU will travel back home to host Vermont for the first time this year on Saturday, April 1. First draw control is set for 12 p.m. at the Bearcats Sports Complex in Vestal, New York.