DANBURY, Conn. – After a nailbiting overtime win over Springfield College on Sunday, the Western Connecticut State University women's lacrosse team played yet another contest with an extra session on Wednesday night at the Westside Athletic Complex. However, this time they came up on the short end of a 9-8 decision, falling to non-league foe Coast Guard Academy.
The Bears netted the equalizer at the buzzer of regulation before tickling the twine 2:13 into overtime to seal the comeback win.
WestConn senior attack Dominique DeMarsico (Danbury, Conn.) tallied a game-high six points, registering four goals – good for a team-leading 35 on the season – to go along with two assists.
Junior attack Alexa Riggio chipped in with two goals, while junior goalkeeper Anna Schipf (Babylon, N.Y.) was stellar, finishing with 13 saves.
Senior attack Katherine Pittman (Nantucket, Mass.) notched four goals including the game-winner to pace Coast Guard. Classmate Gianna Cascio (Hunterdon County, N.J) added a hat trick which included the tally to force overtime.
The Bears jumped out to a 2-0 lead on a pair of free-position attempts less than seven minutes into the game. WestConn countered with a three-goal spurt to seize a lead on goals from Riggio and DeMarsico.
The score changed hands once again before settling at 5-5 at halftime.
Coast Guard continued to control the majority of possession in the third quarter. They would finish ahead in draw controls, 13-5, for the contest. Each team struck the back of the net setting up a 6-6 contest heading into the fourth.
After falling behind in the fourth, DeMarsico raced downfield, passing a pair of defenders en route to a righty finish, knotting the count at 7-7. Shortly thereafter, she fired a another righty free-position shot into the bottom corner of the cage with 4:04 remaining in regulation to make it 8-7.
However, Coast Guard drew a yellow card with 22 ticks left and subsequently netted a free-position shot as time expired. Moments later, Pittman would seal the comeback win.
With the loss, WestConn dropped to 7-3 overall, while Coast Guard improved to 7-3. WCSU returns to action when they host LEC foe Castleton University on Saturday at 2 p.m.
