University of New Hampshire Athletics
University of New Hampshire
Fairfield
SIMPSON SCORES FIVE GOALS; WOMEN'S LAX FENDS OFF FAIRFIELD, 14-10
3/28/2010 12:00:00 AM | Women's Lacrosse
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| JENNY SIMPSON |
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| KATHLEEN O'KEEFE |
DURHAM, N.H. --
Jenny Simpson (New Canaan, Conn.) recorded six
points with five goals and an assist as the University of New
Hampshire women's lacrosse team fended off Fairfield University's
second-half rally to record a 14-10 non-conference victory Sunday
afternoon at Memorial Field.
UNH, which has won four of five home games this season, and
Fairfield are both 5-3 overall. Both teams wore red armbands in
memory of Maureen O'Shea, the coach of the Connecticut Lacrosse
Futures club team who passed away March 12 following a battle with
cancer.
Simpson, the America East Player of the Game, finished with
personal bests in both goals and assists, and Ilana
Cohen (Andover, Mass.) scored a career-high three goals to
match her best of three points. Hayley Rausch
(Severna Park, Md.; 2g, 1a), Allie Bratton
(Windermere, Fla.; 2g) and Shaunna Kaplan
(Framingham, Mass.; 1g, 1a) also tallied multiple points for the
Wildcats.
UNH goalkeeper Kathleen O'Keefe (Chatham, N.J.)
recorded her first career victory with a nine-save effort; she was
also credited with five ground balls. Allie Duclos
(South Windsor, Conn.) finished with five GB and two caused
turnovers while Jess Cassotis (York, Maine) had
two GB, two CTO one one draw control. Bratton finished with a
team-high three DC while Rausch also contributed three ground
balls, two caused turnovers and one draw control.
The Stags were led by Kristin Coleman (4g, 1a) and Caitlin Young
(4g), who also tallied five ground balls, three caused turnovers
and three draw controls. Coleman was also credited with two GB, two
CTO and two DC. Katie Keenan stopped five shots in goal.
UNH scored the initial six goals of the game and held a 7-3
halftime lead, but Fairfield scored goals 14 seconds apart early in
the second half to quickly trim the deficit to two goals. Coleman,
off a feed from Katie MacKay, scored her first goal of the game on
a shot from the right wing at 28:14. Moments later, Young collected
a ground ball near midfield, raced down the center and fired a shot
from the top of the fan into the goal at 28:00.
Simpson gave the 'Cats an 8-5 lead at 26:03 when she curled behind
the net and scored at the right doorstep for her third goal of the
afternoon.
The Stags responded with free-position goals by Young at 26:03 and
Coleman at 23:08 to pull within 8-7.
Two minutes later, Keenan kept the visitors within one goal with a
save against Kaplan from point-blank range on the right side. With
16 minutes remaining, O'Keefe preserved UNH's advantage by denying
Chloe Mangan.
The Wildcats went ahead 9-7 at 15:14 when Cohen, cutting down the
middle of the fan, one-timed Rausch's pass from behind the net into
the cage. Simpson's fourth tally of the game gave UNH a three-goal
advantage of 10-7 at 13:13. Rausch, deep on the right side of the
fan, passed the ball across the goal mouth to Simpson, who
maintained her balance to keep out of the goalie crease and release
a low shot into the goal.
Fairfield scored man-up goals 43 seconds apart -- at 11:56 and
11:13 -- to once again pull within one goal, 10-9. Brittany Bare's
shot from the top of the fan found Coleman on the right side and
her shot sailed inside the near post, and Coleman scored again on a
similar shot less than a minute later.
The Stags, who won 11 of 15 draw controls in the second half and 15
of 25 overall, gained possession off the ensuing draw control but
committed a turnover. UNH cleared the ball the length of the field
and Cohen, from 20 yards out, charged down the middle of the fan
and fired a low shot past Keenan to give New Hampshire an 11-9
lead.
Young was awarded a free position at the top of the fan and placed
a shot into the low-right corner of the cage to once again make it
a one-goal game, 11-10, at 9:00.
O'Keefe made three saves in the ensuing 4:30 to preserve UNH's
one-goal cushion. On the draw control following Young's tally,
Fairfield gained possession and Amanda Best fired a shot over the
crossbar; the visitors maintained control but the UNH goalie denied
Mangan with 8:03 on the clock.
Following a save by Keenan at the other end of the field with 6:53
remaining, O'Keefe once again kept UNH in front with a save against
Bare. Coleman was awarded a free position with 5:26 to play,
O'Keefe also denied that opportunity to keep the score 11-10 in
favor of the 'Cats.
Fairfield maintained possession, however, but then UNH's
Casey Doyle (Ivyland, Pa.) forced a turnover to
give possession to the Wildcats with just over five minutes
remaining.
New Hampshire went into a perimeter attack and that produced a
scoring opportunity in which Kaplan curled behind the net to the
left post for a goal and 12-10 lead at 3:38.
Following a Fairfield timeout, UNH won the ensuing draw control.
Young, however, immediately blocked a pass and scooped up the
ground ball to give possession to the Stags. Moments later, her
shot from the right wing caromed off the near post. The teams
battled for possession, and O'Keefe emerged from the scrum with the
ball with just under three minutes to play.
The 'Cats initially were patient in the defensive end, but then
quickly went into a transition attack in which Amber
Casiano (South Windsor, Conn.), from the top-right, sent a
pass diagonally across the fan and Simpson tallied her fifth goal
of the game at 2:07 to give UNH a 13-10 advantage. The assist
marked Casiano's first career point.
Bratton closed the scoring with 55 seconds on the clock. With her
back to the goal, she corralled Kaplan's entry pass and rocked
back-and-forth with steps to the right and left twice before
turning and firing a shot into the goal.
Young won an extended battle for control of the ensuing draw
control and found Bare alone in the offensive end. Bare then fired
a shot from the top-left of the fan that was stopped by
O'Keefe.
Fairfield ended the game with a 28-23 edge in shots as well as the
15-10 advantage in draw controls. UNH had a slight edge in ground
balls, 20-18, and the turnovers were also nearly even -- UNH 18,
Fairfield 17.
UNH held the visitors scoreless for the opening 23 minutes of the
game to build a 6-0 lead. Simpston netted unassisted goals on low
shots at 27:13 and 25:57 to give the 'Cats a 2-0 advantage.
Bratton's unassisted tally advanced the score to 3-0 at 23:47 and
Rausch, off a feed from Simpson, struck at 21:24 for a four-goal
cushion.
Kate Keagins (Bay Shore, N.Y.) collected a pass on
the top-right side and continued towards the center of the fan,
where she fired a shot into the net at 12:46. Cohen then scored a
free-position goal at 11:17 to give the home team a six-goal
advantage.
The Stags scored three of the last four goals of the half to pull
within 7-3. Young scored on a free position at 6:57 and Mangan,
with the assistance of Coleman, made the score 6-2 at 2:35.
JoJo Curro (Amherst, N.H.) one-timed a pass from
Kaplan into the goal to reestablish a five-goal cushion just 11
seconds later. Reardon scored an unassisted goal with 12 seconds
remaining in the first half.
Curro and Rausch have tallied a point in all eight games this
season. Kaplan's second-half goal was the 90th of her career.
New Hampshire returns to action March 31 (4 p.m.) at Yale. The
Wildcats' next home game is April 3 vs. UMBC. Game time at Memorial
Field is 1 p.m.
