PROVIDENCE, R.I. – The Castleton University women's lacrosse team picked up its first Little East Conference victory of the season on Friday night, defeating Rhode Island College 27-13 at La Salle Academy.
The Spartans' 27 goals are the second most in a single game in program history, and the team's 31 draw controls in the contest set a new program record and is the second-highest total in a single game in NCAA Division III history.
Lacey Greenamyre was responsible for 21 draw controls, the third-highest total in a single game in Division III this season.
The Spartans were in control from the opening draw, never trailing in the contest while outshooting RIC 48-28 with a 38-20 margin in shots on goal. Castleton had a 29-25 edge in ground balls and a 31-13 edge in draw controls in the game.
Megan Ward had a team-leading nine points on the day, scoring seven times and dishing out two assists.
Phoebe Loomis became just the fourth different player in Castleton history to score eight goals in a game, while
Madelyn Cote added eight points of her own on three goals and five assists. Greenamyre added five goals and two helpers to her line, while
Tien Connor and
Kimberly McCarthy had two goals apiece. Ward and Cote tied for the team lead with six ground balls each, and Cote led the team with three caused turnovers. The Spartans scored on 7-of-8 free position shots.
Maddie Brasser earned the win in goal for Castleton, stopping seven shots in the contest.
Rhode Island College's offense was paced by five goals and an assist from Claire Greene. Emily Marino had a hat-trick as well. Amara Gibau had five ground balls and Greene led the team with eight draw controls. Olivia Brennan made 11 saves in the loss.
Castleton got on the board first as Ward scored a player down just over three minutes into the contest. RIC tied the game less than a minute later, but Loomis wasted no time getting the Spartans back on the board, scoring 11 seconds later for a 2-1 lead. Loomis' goal was the first of six unanswered scores for the Spartans, two of which came from Connor and another two from Greenamyre. After RIC made it 7-2, Ward scored her third of the game to make it 8-2 with 6:15 left in the first quarter. The Anchorwomen closed the first frame with three unanswered goals for an 8-5 score after 15 minutes.
The score moved to 8-6 after another RIC goal to open the second, but Loomis again kick-started a long run for Castleton—this one spanning seven goals. Loomis scored three times in the stretch, with McCarthy scoring twice in the span as well. McCarthy's second goal of the day was her 40th of the season and gave Castleton a 15-6 edge. Two goals by RIC made it 15-8, but a late tally by Ward second Castleton into the half on top 16-8.
The Anchorwomen scored the first three goals of the second half to pull within five, 16-11, but Loomis bookended a three-goal stretch with Greenamyre scoring in between for a 19-11 gap. Another RIC goal made it 19-12 before the Spartans put the game fully out of reach with a 7-0 run that spanned from the third quarter into the fourth and made it 26-12. The first goal of the run was scored a player down, while the final three goals of the span were scored a player up. Gibau broke the run for the Anchorwomen with 4:03 to play, but Loomis added one final marker for the 27-13 final score.
Castleton is back in action Wednesday night against Plymouth State at 7 p.m. at Dave Wolk Stadium.
