BUFFALO, N.Y. - Senior Danielle Torre (Massapequa) and freshman Lindsay Abbott (South Onondaga/Onondaga Central) each scored four goals to lead the nationally 19th-ranked Cortland women's lacrosse team to a 17-8 win versus Oneonta in the SUNYAC Semifinals Saturday afternoon. Cortland, the second seed in the tournament, improved to 12-6 overall with the victory, and third-seeded Oneonta fell to 10-6. The Red Dragons advanced to meet top-seeded Buffalo St., a 19-9 winner versus fourth-seeded Geneseo in the first semifinal.

Abbott also added two assists, while Torre chipped in with one assist. Junior Nicki Mahoney (Canandaigua/Canandaigua Academy) had three goals and an assist, junior Jess Fritz (Baldwinsville/C.W. Baker) recorded two goals and an assist and sophomore Megan Clare (Shirley/William Floyd) scored twice. Senior Meghan Gallagher (Long Beach) and sophomore Brianna Shost (Mahopac) each picked up a goal. Freshman goalie Brianna Straut (Nanuet) made seven saves and allowed six goals in 50 minutes, two seconds, before giving way to freshman Amanda Caloia (Baldwinsville/C.W. Baker, who stopped two shots in the final 9:58.

Rosemarie Fazio led the Oneonta offense with three goals and two assists. Brianne Ruzek scored twice, and Heidi Kissinger, Somer Shuffield and Rebecca Monteith netted one goal apiece. Annelise Muscietta made four saves.

Cortland grabbed a 3-0 lead less than five minutes into the game as Fritz, Torre and Abbott each scored. Fazio netted Oneonta's first goal at 22:21, and Cortland responded with four straight goals from four different players to open up a 7-1 lead with 17:05 left in the half. Monteith stopped the run at 14:41 with an unassisted goal, but the second-seeded Red Dragons strung together six goals for a commanding 13-2 lead. Kissinger finally ended the binge 1:29 before intermission.

Scores from Abbott and Mahoney pushed the lead to 15-3. Fazio scored her second of the game at 22:09 to make it a 15-4 game before Shost and Abbott made it a 17-4 score. Oneonta tallied the game's last four goals for the final of 17-8.

2009-05-01