BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Powered by a 10-goal first half explosion, Lehigh clinched a spot in the upcoming Patriot League tournament with a 15-11 win over Colgate Saturday afternoon at the Ulrich Sports Complex. Sophomore Lauren Dykstra led the way with six goals for the Brown and White as Lehigh finishes the regular season at 11-5, 4-2 in the Patriot League. Thanks to Navy's 8-7 win over Bucknell on Saturday, the Mountain Hawks will be the No. 2 seed in the Patriot League tournament and will face Navy in the semifinals Friday in Hamilton, N.Y.

“I'm really proud of this group,” said Lehigh head coach Jill Redfern. “I've been telling them all year long the magic on this team is not in the coaches, it's in all the players and they showed that today getting the win to get into the tournament.”

Lehigh out shot Colgate 40-23 on the afternoon and held a 50-29 advantage in ground balls. Dykstra led the way with 10 ground balls, while senior Tess McGrath added eight. The Mountain Hawks won 17 of 28 draw controls, with McGrath leading the way with four.

Brie Moran opened the scoring for the visitors 1:43 into the contest, before Lehigh responded with goals from Dykstra and senior Sara McIntyre. Courtney Miller tied the game at two, four minutes in, before Lehigh went ahead with four consecutive goals, including three more from Dykstra and the 28th of the season from junior Inneke Carmola.

Colgate pulled within 6-3 on a goal from Megan Lawler, but Lehigh ended the half on a 4-0 run as goals from senior Meagan Tenety, McIntyre, Dykstra and freshman Kelly Draper all scored to put Lehigh up 10-3 at the break.

Sophomore Kindall Healy opened the second half with her fifth goal of the season, before the Raiders answered with three goals to make it 11-6. The teams traded scores for most of the second half with Lehigh's lead staying at five or six, until Maddie Kearns scored in the final minute to account for the four goal final margin.

“We did well to get the momentum early,” explained Redfern. “Our first half was powered by sheer desire and excitement. In the second half we had to work hard for draw controls, we knew that was something that they were excellent at as a team.”

In addition to Dykstra's six tallies, which give her 64 for the season, McIntyre added three scores, while Tenety netted two goals and two assists. Carmola added three assists for the Brown and White.

Moran, Colleen Bubnack, Meghan Lawler and Lizzie Kusbit each scored twice for the Raiders, who fall to 12-4, 5-1 in the league. Christina Roa made 19 saves for the Raiders, while junior Kelsy Ferris turned back 10 shots for the Mountain Hawks.

Lehigh will be the No. 2 seed in the Patriot League tournament, which begins Friday in Hamilton, N.Y. The Mountain Hawks will face No. 3 Navy in one semifinal, with the No. 1 seed and tournament hosts Colgate will meet No. 4 Bucknell in the other.

* * * *

BETHLEHEM, PA. – Colleen Bubnack (Syracuse, N.Y.) scored twice and dished out two assists, but it wasn't enough as Lehigh handed Colgate a 15-11 loss, Saturday afternoon in a Patriot League women's lacrosse clash.

The Raiders, who ended the regular-season with a 12-4 mark (5-1 in league play) saw its five-game win streak snapped in the process to the Mountain Hawks.

Brie Moran (Little Silver, N.J.) scored 1:43 into the contest to give Colgate its lone lead of the game at 1-0. Trailing 2-1, Courtney Miller (Chappaqua, N.Y.) cashed in for her 29th goal of the season with 26:04 remaining in the opening half. Lehigh answered moments later and took the lead for good with four consecutive goals. Meghan Lawler (Liverpool, N.Y.) pulled the Raiders within 6-3, 8:14 before intermission; however, Lehigh scored the final four goals of the half, the last with 24 seconds left and raced into the locker room holding a 10-3 advantage.

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2009-04-18