WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
>> Sophomores
Bella Fisher (Duxbury, Mass.),
Julia Givens (Elverson, Pa.) and
Brooke Lacey (Bethel, Conn.) combined for 11 goals and three assists to power Saint Francis past FDU 13-8 in Northeast Conference (NEC) women's lacrosse action on Saturday.
>> Lacey produced three goals, one assist, four ground balls, four caused turnovers and a draw control, while Givens also stuffed the stat sheet with four tallies, a helper, three ground balls and two caused miscues. Fisher posted four markers, an assist, a ground ball, a caused turnover and a draw control.
>>
Taylor Coughlin (Hespeler, Ontario) made 12 saves to help the Red Flash a hold league opponents under 10 goals in back-to-back matches for the second time in program history.
>> Saint Francis improves to 3-1 in NEC play for the first time in team history.
TURNING POINT OF THE GAME
The sophomore trio started the game with the first five tallies of the afternoon to help the Loretto program jump out to a 5-2 lead going into halftime. Lacey (13:55) and
Bella Fisher (11:24) posted the first two goals of the day to hand the Red Flash a 2-0 lead.
Bella Fisher scored unassisted with 4:19 left in the first quarter.
Lacey notched her second goal of the day off a pass from
Danielle Hernandez (New Fairfield, Conn.) 48 seconds into the second frame before Givens converted a free-position attempt at 11:38 for a 5-1 advantage.
FLASH QUOTE
"FDU definitely made us work to earn the victory today. At the end of the day, we made big plays at points in the game when it mattered most. That grittiness is what led us to victory. Brooke and Julia were the dynamic duo today. They crushed it as middies, putting up positive points in every statistical category. Victoria had another great game on the draw circle. One of her draw controls led directly to a goal which gave us some breathing room during FDU's push. FDU's attackers were wide open at points inside the eight but Taylor stayed composed and made the point blank save. We didn't play the perfect game but we hung tough and came away with the win. That's all that matters."
- head coach Tracy Coyne on the match
FLASH MOMENTS
Givens joined Lacey and
Bella Fisher with two goals on the afternoon unassisted at 10:26 in the third quarter. Lacey assisted
Lizzie Fisher (Hagerstown, Md.) at 7:49 before Hernandez recorded her second helper of the day when she set up
Bella Fisher at 5:20 in the third quarter. Lacey capped the scoring in the third quarter off a feed from Givens with one second left in the frame for a 9-4 lead.
Christina Roncarati (East Longmeadow, Mass.) posted her first goal since returning from her leg injury off a pass from
Lizzie Fisher at 10:44 in the fourth quarter for the only Red Flash score of the day that did not involve a true sophomore. The last three goals of the day for Saint Francis were the Givens and
Bella Fisher show. Givens converted a free-position attempt at 7:53,
Bella Fisher twinkled the twine unassisted for her fourth score of the day 29 seconds later and then
Bella Fisher connected with Givens at 5:27 to set the final score at 13-8.
FLASH NUGGETS
Lacey registered a multi-goal performance for third time this season and fourth time in her career, and also third time in four NEC games this season. It was also her third hat trick of her career and second this season. The sophomore registered multiple caused turnovers for third time this season and had at least two ground balls for the second time in 2024 and the sixth time in her career thanks to her career-high four ground balls and four caused turnovers. It is the 17th time in team history a player posted four caused turnovers in a game, which ranks eighth in program history.
Givens notched her first four-goal performance this season and third of her career. It is the sixth time this season she has recorded a multigoal performance and the seventh time in her career she has found the twine at least three times in a game in her career. It is also the sixth time she has grabbed three ground balls and the third time she has posted two caused turnovers.
Bella Fisher, the current NEC Player of the Week, has recorded at least four goals in each of her last three games as she continues her march to 100 points. The sophomore needs 14 points to become the 13th player in program history to reach the milestone, and can join the program's Top-10 in goals with 12 more markers. It is the 10th time the sophomore has scored at least four goals in a game, but the first time she has turned the trick in three-straight games.
Coughlin, the current NEC Defensive Player of the Week, recorded double-digit saves for the fourth time this season and the third time she has turned away at least 12 shots. Saint Francis has held consecutive opponents under 10 goals seven times in team history, but only Coughlin in the last two games and a two-game span in 2021 did the team turn the trick against conference opponents in consecutive games. The record for consecutive games holding an opponent under 10 goals in three in 2013.
Hernandez registered two assists in a game for the third time in 2024 and the 11th time in her career. She has 64 goals and 46 assists for 110 points in her career to sit in sixth place for assists and 10th place for points on the all-time charts.
For the second-straight game,
Victoria DiRenno (Suffern, N.Y.) grabbed a career-high six draw controls, while current NEC Rookie of the Week
Elizabeth Mahmud (Downingtown, Pa.) corralled a career-high four draw controls.
Saint Francis is 3-1 in NEC play for the first time in team history. Prior to this four-game start, the best start was 2-2, which was done three times (2010, 2021, 2023).
It is the fourth time the Red Flash has won three-games in a row and the third time it has happened in the last two seasons. The Loretto program posted a three-game non-conference winning streak during non-conference play and a team-record six-game winning streak that included five NEC wins in 2023.
NEXT UP
Saint Francis returns to action on Wednesday when it starts a two-game homestand against Le Moyne. Match time is 2 p.m.
