WATERVILLE, Me. - Junior midfielder Dominique DeMarsico (Danbury, Conn.) scored five goals and assisted on three others to lead the Western Connecticut State University women's lacrosse team to a convincing 20-5 victory over Johnson and Wales University of Rhode Island in the second round of the NCAA Division III Championships at Colby College on Saturday afternoon.

The Colonials, now 10-0 on the season and recent winners of the Little East Conference title, are making their first appearance in the national tournament and will move on to the third round next weekend, back at Bill Alfond Field on May 15.  A victory next Saturday will catapult WestConn into the national quarterfinals the next day at Colby.

On Saturday, the Colonials trailed 51 seconds into the game, 1-0, when JWU's Dani Lydecker scored an unassisted goal.  In their home white uniforms, WestConn went on to outscore the Wildcats, 12-1 before intermission, including seven straight goals after falling behind.

Senior attack Caroline Galligan (Marshfield, Mass.), Katelyn Contreras (Danbury, Conn.) and Alexa Riggio (North Massapequa, N.Y.) would each finish with three goals on the day.  Galligan and Contreras each tallied a pair of goals before the teams headed for the break.

Colleen Crotty's (Peabody, Mass.) goal with one minute remaining in the first half, put the Colonials up by 10 goals, 12-2, and set up for a continuous clock throughout the final 30 minutes.

Brianna Pota added a pair of goals while Crotty, Olivia Davidson (Brookfield, Conn.), Shannon Hughes (Bethpage, N.Y.) and Colleen Foley (Kingston, Mass.) contributed a goal to the cause.

Anna Schipf (Babylon, N.Y) was stellar in goal once again and made nine saves for the winners.

"For this to be our first time in the NCAAs, this team came out strong and confident as if we have been here before," said WestConn interim head coach Meghan Els.  "It was a really special game and we are excited to come back to Maine next week.  We drew up a great game plan and the team executed well."

Lydecker finished with four goals while Kayla Datys added the 7-3 Wildcats' remaining marker.

Emma Crowley suffered the loss in goal for JWU.  She made eight saves for the 2021 Great Northeast Conference champions.

The NCAA semifinals and title games are slated for May 22 and 23 in Salem, Va.