No. 1 Women's Lacrosse Turns Back New Haven's Upset Bid, 14-13
Box Score WEST HAVEN, Conn. (Apr. 24, 2014) - Freshman attacker
Stefani Vagelatos (Port Jefferson Station, N.Y.) scored two of her three goals in the final three minutes, including the game-winner with 27 seconds left, as the top-ranked LIU Post women's lacrosse team rallied to knock off fourth-ranked New Haven by a score of 14-13 at Kayo Field on Thursday in West Haven, Conn.
With New Haven (14-2) up 13-11 and the clock ticking under three minutes to go, Vagelatos started a three-goal spurt by putting a shot past Chargers goalie Marissa McDermott. Less than one minute later, a tally by senior attacker/midfielder
Samantha Losco (Smithtown, N.Y.) leveled the score and set up a key draw control for the Pioneers. Junior midfielder
Jenna Pierro (Holbrook, N.Y.) won the draw to start the final scoring play as LIU Post (15-0) elected to wind the clock down to the last remaining seconds. One pass from senior midfielder
Jackie Sileo (Wantagh, N.Y.) set up the dramatic game-winning goal by Vagelatos to complete the comeback victory for the green and gold.
The game was a see-saw affair throughout as neither team led by more than two goals in the entire contest. The scoring started with a goal by senior midfielder
Katie Rotan (West Islip, N.Y.) in the first 51 seconds of play. New Haven answered back with two goals by Corinne Fisher before a three-goal run by the Pioneers. The first half of action continued in this way as both teams traded goals, with LIU Post leading 7-6 at halftime.
The Chargers opened the second half with two more goals by Corinne Fisher to re-take the lead. The Pioneers then traded four scores with their opponents until New Haven scored two consecutive tallies to take an 11-9 lead. The green and gold were not to be outdone, however, as they answered with two straight goals to tie the game, only to fall behind by two once again. New Haven would lead 13-11 after a goal by Nicole McKee at the 12:51 mark, but that would be the last time that the Chargers found the back of the net in the contest, setting up the heartstopping conclusion.
Sileo led the way for the Pioneers with a seven-point (1 G, 6 A) afternoon, while Rotan led with four goals. Vagelatos added three tallies of her own. Pierro and Losco scored twice to contribute to the offense. Senior attacker
Morgan Chiarenza (Nesconset, N.Y.) added a goal and two assists for a three-point day, and red-shirt sophomore
Alexis Newman (Medford Lakes, N.J.) also put home a goal in the contest.
Freshman midfielder
Connor Bird (Syosset, N.Y.) tied her career-high with seven draw controls for the Pioneers and Pierro added three wins in the circle of her own. Defensively, five different members of the green and gold scooped up two ground balls as the team collected a total of 14.
Senior goalie
Katie Hannan (Gansevoort, N.Y.) made three saves in the cage for LIU Post, while her counterpart, McDermott, stopped four shots for New Haven.
The final team statistics showed just how closely the two teams played each other. LIU Post outshot New Haven by a 24-20 margin, and eked out team victories in ground balls (14-12) and draw controls (15-14). Both teams converted 7-of-11 clear attempts, and the Pioneers committed 13 turnovers to New Haven's 14. The Chargers were able to cause seven of LIU Post's turnovers, while the green and gold only caused four UNH giveaways on the afternoon.
Head Coach
Meghan McNamara and the Pioneers will be in action on Saturday (Apr. 26) in their final regular-season contest as they face St. Thomas Aquinas College in the annual "Battle at Bethpage." The opening draw is set for 5 p.m. at Bethpage High School in Bethpage, N.Y.