BABSON PARK, Mass. – The Wheaton College (Mass.) women's lacrosse team was upended by host No. 14/16 Babson College, 19-6, this evening in New England Women's & Men's Athletic Conference play at MacDowell Field in Babson Park, Mass.
The Lyons slip to 8-6 overall and 5-3 in NEWMAC play, while the Beavers, who are ranked 14th in the most recent Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Association national poll and 16th by USA Lacrosse, improve to 11-2 and a perfect 8-0.
Babson out-shot Wheaton, 31-22, and owned a 17-11 advantage in draw controls. The Beavers' defense allowed just one goal in each of the first three quarters, before allowing three markers in the fourth quarter. The offense scored 10 goals in the opening period to give Babson all the cushion it would need for the remainder of the contest.
Senior midfielder Gabs Smart (Oakland, Maine) led the Lyons with a goal, five ground balls, six draw controls and a pair of caused turnovers, while junior attacker Riley Kilbourn (Madison, Conn.) netted a goal in addition to picking up a ground ball. Junior attacker Jessica Chamberlin (Bow, N.H.) scored a goal and added three draw controls. First year starting goalie Averie Walton (Cumberland, R.I.) stopped two of eight shots in the opening 7:57 of play, before yielding to sophomore keeper Jenna Langan (Lincoln, R.I.), who turned away four of 17 shots in the remaining 52:03 of play.
Senior attacker Amelia Novitch (Dover, Mass.) led all players with five points, including three goals, to go with a ground ball and a caused turnover for the Beavers. Senior attack Kathryn Blake (Medfield, Mass.) netted three goals and added an assist and a ground ball and senior attacker Michaela Downer (North Andover, Mass.) tallied a trio of goals in addition to picking up a ground ball and causing a turnover. Graduate student midfielder Ellie Hilsabeck (Hingham, Mass.) chipped in with three goals and a ground ball. Senior goalie Kathleen Murphy (Scarborough, Maine) stopped nine of 12 shots in 43:30 of play, before sophomore keeper Morgan McGahan (Ho Ho Kus, N.J.) denied three of six shots in the final 16:30 of action.
Babson opened the game with five straight goals as part of a 14-1 run that extended into the second half. Blake, Hilsabeck and Novitch all scored three times during the opening stretch, including a marker from Novitch to give the home team a 14-1 lead with 2:11 to play in the second quarter. Kilbourn tallied Wheaton's only marker of the first quarter and Chamberlin found the back of the net for the Lyons with 30 seconds left in the second quarter to cut the deficit to 14-2 before the intermission.
It took just 28 seconds for senior attack Solana Fahey (North Andover, Mass.) to net the first goal of the third quarter and increase the Beavers' count to 15-2. Sophomore attacker Georgia Qua (Suffield, Conn.) matched the marker for Wheaton at the 7:32 mark of the third quarter with her 27th goal of the year to make it 15-3. Senior midfielder Clare Connolly (Hanover, Mass.) bumped Babson's margin to 16-3 with the final goal of the third quarter at 2:07.
The Lyons scored three of the final five goals of the game in the fourth quarter. First year attacker Emma-Jane Parsons (Oakland, Maine) and Smart both scored to open the period for Wheaton and pull the visitors to within 17-5 with 6:56 to play in the game. The Beavers answered with back-to-back markers, including a goal from junior attack Lily Bedard (Jupiter, Fla.) to increase Babson's advantage to 19-5. Wheaton sophomore attack Annemieke Buterbaugh (Cape Elizabeth, Maine) took a feed from junior midfielder Sara Spielman (Norwalk, Conn.) and scored the final goal of the night with under two minutes to play in the contest.
The Lyons return to play on Saturday, April 19 when they head to New London, Conn. to take on United States Coast Guard Academy at 12:00 p.m. in NEWMAC play, while the Beavers host Springfield College on the same day at 12:30 p.m.
