Kerry Kiley
Kerry Kiley

Women's Lacrosse Opens Season with 20-12 Setback at MIT

Cambridge, Mass. – A record-breaking performance from junior Laura Wacker (Brooklyn, N.Y.) along with a 9-3 game-ending run powered the MIT women's lacrosse team to a 20-12 victory over Framingham State University on Tuesday afternoon.

Wacker amassed eight goals and three assists for an Institute record 11 points, eclipsing the previous mark of 10 set by Tracy Sadowski '99 in 1997 which was equaled five times.

Senior Kerry Kiley (Mansfield, Mass.) and junior Chelsea Temple (Rutland, Vt.) both scored a team-high three goals for the Rams who opened the season this afternoon with the loss.

Kiley put Framingham State on the board 14 seconds after the opening draw, but MIT responded with a 7-2 spurt that resulted in a comfortable cushion at the 10:52 mark. Wacker accounted for three goals and set up two tallies by senior Katie Kauffman (Olney, Md.). A free-position shot by Temple, followed by solo efforts from junior Brittany McLean (Walpole, Mass.) and freshman Zoe Reilly (Boyertown, Pa.) brought the Rams within one (7-6) with 5:17 left in the half.

Junior Molly McShane's (Lake Bluff, Ill.) free-position goal momentarily gave the Engineers some breathing room; however, Temple replied with her own free-position marker 15 seconds later at 1:39. With 35 seconds remaining, McShane buried another free-position goal which gave MIT a 9-7 edge at the intermission.

Temple tacked on a free-position goal early in the second half to once again narrow the gap to one, but Kauffman and Wacker found the back of the net less than a minute apart. Sophomore Lauren Kent (Framingham, Mass.) notched a free-position goal for Framingham State, trimming its deficit to 11-9 with 19:25 to go.

Back-to-back goals from sophomore Kaitlyn Nealon (Yorktown Heights, N.Y.) ignited the game-changing run for the Engineers. The Rams, however, stayed within striking distance as they narrowed the gap to three on three occasions, the last at 15-12 with 11:41 on the clock. The visitors wouldn't get any closer as Wacker scored three straight goals and Nealon posted two goals inside the final minute to secure the victory.

Nealon finished the day with four goals and an assist as Kauffman registered three goals, two assists, and four draw controls. McShane posted two goals, four draw controls, and two groundballs while sophomore Erica Du (Excelsior, Minn.) added two goals, both on free-position attempts. Junior Meghan Wright (Devon, Pa.) chipped in one goal and four draw controls as freshman Emma Kane (Garden City, N.Y.) had one assist and three groundballs. Freshman Lyndsy Muri (Ashland, Mass.) contributed two assists and three draw controls while classmate Carol Davis (Marlborough, Mass.) recorded two groundballs and two caused turnovers.

In net, sophomore Sarah Ritter (The Woodlands, Texas) collected nine saves as freshman Candice Kaplan (Arlington, Va.) played in the final three minutes.

In addition to their hat-tricks, Temple tacked on four draw controls and three groundballs while Kiley registered three draw controls and two groundballs. Reilly and Kent both scored two goals as Reilly contributed two groundballs. Junior Heather Masse (Billerica, Mass.) posted a goal and an assist while junior Brittany McLean (Walpole, Mass.) rounded out the Rams with one goal and four draw controls. Sophomore Rebecca Rixan (Stow, Mass.) made two saves in the first half as freshman Ashley Holmes (East Sandwich, Mass.) totaled four saves in the second stanza.

Next up for MIT (1-4) will be its NEWMAC opener on Saturday, March 24 at Smith College. Framingham State (0-1) will host Mount Ida College on Thursday, March 22 in its first home game of the season at 4 p.m.

 

Release courtesy of MIT Sports Information.