BOSTON - Powered by six goals from senior Sarah Dalton, the 12th-ranked Boston University lacrosse team opened America East Conference play with a 15-9 win over Albany on Saturday afternoon at Nickerson Field. Junior McKinley Curro added four goals for the Terriers, who improved to 6-3 overall with their fourth straight win.

Junior Traci Landy scored a hat trick for BU, while classmate Xan Weitzel and freshman Hannah Frey got on the scoreboard as well. Junior Rachel Klein made seven saves between the pipes.

The Great Danes were led by three goals from sophomore Jodi Battaglia, while junior Julie Bush added a goal and two assists. Senior Katie Neer stopped six shots and picked up four ground balls in goal for Albany, who drops to 4-6 overall and 1-1 in conference play.

The Terriers scored the first four goals of the game and never looked back. Curro opened the scoring with 26:12 on the clock and Weitzel doubled the lead a minute and a half later. Dalton scored a pair of goals 11 seconds apart to give BU a four-goal lead that the Great Danes were unable to erase.

Battaglia scored a pair of goals for the Great Danes to make it a 5-2 game 10 minutes into the contest, but Frey and Curro added to the BU lead before sophomore Mel Rorie hit a free-position shot that made it 7-3 midway through the opening half.

The two sides traded tallies for the remainder of the first with Curro striking twice for the Terriers, once on a free-position and once after a pass from junior Erica Baumgartner, while senior Rory Redmond and junior Christine Grueniger scored for the Great Danes to account for a 9-5 score at the half.

Dalton scored two more to open the second half and after an Albany goal from junior Kayla Best, the Terriers reeled off another string of four unanswered goals, a run powered by three scores from Landy. The Terriers didn't score again after the midway point of the second half, but the 15-6 lead built at that point proved to be insurmountable as goals down the stretch from Battaglia, Bush and sophomore Taylor Frink were not enough to bring the Great Danes back.

The Terriers held a 36-22 advantage in shots and had a slim lead in both ground balls (18-16) and draw controles (14-12). Six of BU's goals came on free-position shots, including two each from Dalton and Landy. In addition to her six-goal contribution, Dalton picked up three ground balls and controlled five draws to earn America East Player of the Game honors along with Battaglia. Senior Kelly Munroe and sophomore Mandy Rogers each matched Dalton with three ground balls.

Battaglia and sophomore Nikki Branchini each tallied four ground balls for the Great Danes.

The Terriers continue America East action on Wednesday (April 1), when they travel to Durham, N.H., to face 20th-ranked rival New Hampshire in a rematch of last season's conference championship game at 3:00 p.m.

2009-03-28