Saturday, February 23 | at Duquesne | Pittsburgh, Pa. | Rooney Field | 1 p.m. | LIVE STATS | No Live Stream
 
OPENING DRAW 
Saint Francis will battle Duquesne for the 12th time in team history dating back to the 2002 campaign. It will also be the sixth meeting in Pittsburgh. The last time these two teams tangled was 2020. 

THE WORD ON THE DUKES
Duquesne comes into the contest 2-1 after defeating Youngstown State 12-11 on Wednesday. The Dukes also have a 12-11 overtime win against Akron in their season opener on February 8. Corrinne Webb paced Duquesne against the Penguins with four goals, while Mackenzie Leszcznski (one goal, two assists), Haley Reeck (two goals, one assist), and Chelsea Evans (two goals, one assist) each had three points. Korrigan Sweeney made 10 saves on Wednesday. Leszcznski powers the Dukes on the season with eight goals and five assists for 13 points, while Evans is second with six goals and two assists for eight points. Leszcznski also leads in draw controls (17), and Evans leads in caused turnovers (8). Megan LaBorne has played the most minutes in between the pipes with 125:59 with 14 saves, an 11.91 goals against average, and a .359 save percentage.

LAST TIME WE MET
Duquesne defeated Saint Francis 20-13 on February 26, 2020 in Loretto. Emileigh Scott scored eight times for the Red Flash, while Autumn McHenry (one goal, four assists) and Morgan Day (one tally, three helpers) also posted multiple points on the afternoon. Rilee Bradshaw paced the Dukes with four goals and an assist, while Maddie Hart added three goals and two helpers. Carlee Braverman and Michaela Connolly each found the back of the net four times. Lindsey Killian made 10 saves, and Elyssa Enrique had seven stops for Saint Francis, while Maddy Curtis turned away eight shots for Duquesne.

LAST WEEKS ACTION
Saint Francis lost two games in Ohio in its first week of action at Akron and Youngstown State. Junior Julia Givens had four goals against Youngstown State and five overall, while junior Mak Patten had a goal and five assists, including assisting the first collegiate goal for freshman Heather Delbone (against Akron) and Samantha Hewitt (against Youngstown State). Delbone posted three goals and an assist, while Christina Roncarati had three tallies in the two games. Taylor Coughlin made 20 saves in the two contests.

NEXT TIME OUT 
Saint Francis will play one game in the third week of the season at home against Lindenwood on February 27. The game will now be the team's home opener after its contest against Youngstown State was moved to Ohio due to the field conditions of DeGol Field.

NEC WEEKLY HONORS 
Heather Delbone was selected as the NEC Rookie of the Week for February 10-16. Delbone registered three goals and an assist in her first two collegiate games of her career. Delbone becomes the 14th player in program history to earn top rookie of the week honors and the first since sophomore teammate Elizabeth Mahmud earned the distinction on March 24, 2024. Five players on the 2025 roster have received NEC Rookie of the Week honors. Along with Delbone and Mahmud, seniors Chyler Espino, Christina Roncarati (three times) and junior Julia Givens (twice) earned the recognition. Givens and Patten were named NEC Prime Performers for the week. Givens tallied five goals, four caused turnovers, three draw controls, and a caused turnover in the opening week for the Red Flash. Patten, who came into the season with three goals and three assists, nearly surpassed the point total in her first two games of her junior season. The junior tallied a goal and five assists for the Red Flash in the two games in Ohio.

PRESEASON POLL
The Saint Francis women's lacrosse team has been tabbed to finish fifth, according to the Northeast Conference (NEC) preseason poll. LIU was selected as the unanimous preseason favorite, while Stonehill, Le Moyne, Wagner, Saint Francis, FDU, CCSU Delaware State, Mercyhurst, and Howard round out the 10-team poll. Mercyhurst is in its first year in the NEC.

A DAVID PUDDY HIGH-FIVE
Senior Nancy Alden is the only player on the roster to have a five-goal game with her five-tally performance at Kent State on March 13, 2024.

HATTIES 
Junior Julia Givens leads the team with nine career hat tricks, including a four-goal performance against Youngstown State on February 16. Senior Nancy Alden and junior Brooke Lacey each have three hat tricks in their career. Senior Christina Roncarati and junior Victoria DiRenno also have a three-goal performance in their career.

MILESTONE ALERT 
Senior Taylor Coughlin is seventh for career saves with 192. She can move into sixth place with 58 stops. Coming into the season, Coughlin is the program's all-time leader in goals against average (11.12).
 
Senior Chyler Espino is just outside the Top-10 in draw controls (81), caused turnovers (36) and ground balls (72). The senior needs two draws, 10 caused turnovers and 12 ground balls to join the Top-10 in each category. The senior had 10 draw controls against FDU on April 19, 2023 for the sixth-most in a single game in team history and the 13th time in program history it occurred.

COLLEGIATE FIRSTS
Freshman Heather Delbone notched the first goal of the season against Akron on February 11 for her first collegiate goal. Fellow freshman Samantha Hewitt notched her first collegiate score against Youngstown State on February 16. Junior Mak Patten assisted with both tallies. Delbone, Hewitt, Bella Teche, and Lily Robertson saw their first collegiate action as a member of the starting lineup, while Lani Filoon came off the bench for her first collegiate action against Akron.

AYE, AYE, CAPTAIN 
Seniors Taylor Coughlin and Chyler Espino, and junior Brooke Lacey have been elected team captains for the 2025 season. Senior Victoria DiRenno, junior Julia Givens and Elizabeth Mahmud have been named to the Leadership Council.

RETURNING ALL-NEC PERFORMERS 
Senior Chyler Espino returns in 2025 for her senior season after being injured in the first game of the 2024 season at Oregon. Espino was an All-NEC first-team performer in her sophomore campaign. Junior Julia Givens was an All-NEC second-team recipient in 2024.

WELCOME TO THE LO' 
Saint Francis women's lacrosse head coach Morgan Gott has added 11 newcomers to the team in 2025. Sophomore Elizabeth Garcia, and freshmen Kayla Adam, Heather Delbone, Lani Filoon, Samantha Hewitt, Mackenzie Metzger, Sav Musto, Lily Robertson, Bella Tesche and Calyssa Yankow joined the Red Flash for the 2025 campaign. Garcia and Robertson transferred to Saint Francis for the spring semester. Gott also added assistant coach Craig Lowery to the team.
 
FROM THE GREAT WHITE NORTH 
Saint Francis has four players who hail from Canada: Seniors Olivia Baldini (Hamilton, Ontario) and Taylor Coughlin (Hespeler, Ontario), junior Mak Patten (Welland, Ontario), and freshman Sav Musto (Stouffville, Ontario). Both goalkeepers (Coughlin and Musto) are from Canada.

ABOUT THE COACH 
Head coach Morgan Gott is in her first season in Loretto after serving as an assistant coach for the last two seasons. In 2023, she helped the Red Flash has set a program record for overall wins (10), conference wins (5), longest winning streak (6) and clinched the program's first-ever NEC Tournament appearance. In the two seasons as an assistant coach, Gott helped the Red Flash to an 18-14 overall record and a 12-6 record in NEC play and the first two NEC Tournament appearances in program history.