Box Score HENNIKER, N.H. – The New England College women's lacrosse team starts the season off with a loss against Vermont State University Castleton. After a two-goal first half outing, the team flipped a switch and scored seven goals in the second half, but their rally would fall short in non- conference action on Saturday at Don Melander Field in Henniker, New Hampshire.
 
THE BASICS
Score: Vermont State University Castleton 15, New England College 9
Records: Spartans 1-1, 0-0 LEC| Pilgrims 0-1, 0-0 GNAC
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• NEC only needed the first 1:39 of the first quarter to make their presence known in the home opener as sophomore attacker Lucy Armour (Falmouth, Mass.) scored off a free position shot opportunity. Shortly after the Spartans responded as junior goalkeeper Isabella Marzano (Warwick, R.I.) committed a turnover while out of the net with the ball ending up in the stick of VTSU Castleton junior midfielder Phoebe Loomis (Jeffersonville, Vt.) who found the back of the net for a Spartans goal to even the game up 1-1. From there on the Spartans kept their foot on the gas for the remainder of the quarter, firing off two more shots into the back of the net to end the quarter in their favor, 3-1.
• VTSU Castleton picked up right where they left off in the previous quarter as they begin the second quarter with the first goal. Senior attacker Brianna Paul (Brattleboro, Vt.) would dodge from the back of the to locate the cutting freshman attacker in Bella Gale (Sailsbury, Vt.) for the fourth Spartan goal stretching their lead out to three goals. That was only the case for a short period of time. NEC found a way to strike back and give themselves some momentum with NEC sophomore midfielder Carmela Goodwin (Lebanon, N.H.) earning a free position shot opportunity that would lead to the 'Grims second goal of the game to make it a 4-2 game still favoring the Spartans. The 'Grims weren't the only ones that would benefit from free position shot opportunities as the Spartans earned one of their own that translated into another goal to give the team their three-goal lead back thanks to Loomis, 5-2. VTSU Castleton would continue to fire on all cylinders for the remainder of the quarter, tacking on two more goals for a five-goal lead going into the half, 7-2.
• After three goals were scored by the Spartans in the third quarter, NEC found a way to stop the bleeding. NEC junior attacker Meadow Gilchrist (Stamford, Conn.) would get the 'Grims back on track as freshman midfielder Michelina Follis (Saugus, Mass.) utilized her free position opportunity to dish it out to Gilchrist for the NEC goal. Shortly after NEC would strike once again, graduate midfielder Annalisa Crooks (Nantucket, Mass.) would find Goodwin that fired off the shot for her second goal of the game, 10-4. Goodwin would continue to be a force to be reckoned as she would display her entire offensive repertoire for NEC scoring an additional two goals by the end of the quarter, 13-6 still in favor of VTSU Castleton.
• The scoring momentum would be diminished for a majority of the quarter, but they would find a way to ignite a spark in a big way by scoring the next three goals to shorten the deficit to five goals with 1:31 remaining in the final quarter, 14-9. Unfortunately, their rally would fall short as the game would belong to VTSU Castleton on the day, 15-9.

 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• NEC Marzano collected 13 saves in between the pipes.
• VTSU Castleton senior goalkeeper Katie Stager (Long Valley, N.J.) had three saves.
• Shots on the day were in favor of the Spartans, 40-21.
• NEC wasn't far off in their clearing endeavors, but the Spartans would have the advantage in this category, going 19-for-22 as NEC was 15-for-24.
• NEC Goodwin shined the brightest on the field today for the 'Grims tying for the game-high in goals securing four. The Lebanon native starts her season with a bang as the freshman finishes with a hat trick.
• VTSU Castleton Paul was brilliant for the Spartans, capturing the game-high in points gathering off three goals and three assists.

 
UP NEXT

• NEC is back at Don Melander field for their next game on Tuesday, March 4^th at 4:00 PM when they take on the University of Maine-Farmington.
• VTSU Castleton will host Rivier University on Tuesday, March 4^th at 6:00 PM from Dave Wolk Stadium.

 
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