Moon Township, Pa. ? Sacred Heart used a seven-goal run in the second half to overcome a 6-5 halftime deficit and win its third straight Northeast Conference match-up as the Pioneers defeated the Robert Morris University women's lacrosse team, 15-9, this afternoon at Joe Walton Stadium. The Colonials fall to 2-7 overall, while posting a mark of 1-2 in NEC play.
The Pioneers built up steam after scoring the final goal of the first half and continued the run into the second with three consecutive goals before freshman Ashley Trombetta (Sykesville, Md. / Century) broke up the streak with her second of the year at 23:01.
From that point, Sacred Heart took control of the game with a seven-goal run that lasted nearly 11 minutes. RMU fought back with back-to-back scores by sophomore Ali Gibbons (Candia, N.H. / Manchester) and junior Jenn Collins (Edgewater, Md. / South River) less than 25 seconds apart at 7:55 and 7:23, but the stalling tactics of Sacred Heart put the Colonials' comeback out of reach.
Junior Emily Tomlinson (Springfield, Va. / West Springfield) led all RMU scorers with four goals, three of which came in the first 12 minutes of the game. Tomlinson connected on the Colonials' first goal to tie the game at 1-1 at 26:22, while sophomore Alana Beck (Carle Place, N.Y. / Old Dominion) moved the score to 2-1 at the 22:27 mark with her 11th goal of the season.
Tomlinson extended the lead to 4-1 with back-to-back tallies at 21:15 and 18:00, forcing Sacred Heart to burn a timeout. After the stoppage, the Pioneers closed the gap with two straight scores to pull within one, but an unassisted goal by junior Kara Blakeley (Gibsonia, Pa. / Pine Richland) at 11:26 would give RMU a 5-3 cushion.
Sacred Heart outscored Robert Morris 2-1 through the final eight minutes of the first half. The Pioneers cut the lead back to one with a goal by Amanda Williams at 7:50. However, Tomlinson's fourth of the game thanks to an assist from junior Ashley Levering (Glenwood, Md. / Glenelg) at 4:58 would give the Colonials a two-goal lead once again.
Levering finished the game with three assists, giving her 19 points on the year and moving her into a tie for the team lead with fellow attacker Beck.
SHU's Jessica Ingrelli brought the Pioneers back within one just 35 seconds later when she connected off an assist from Mary Montesarchio at 4:23 to end the first half scoring down by one at 6-5.
Sophomore Erica Webb (Arnold, Md. / Broadneck) suffered the loss in net, stopping five shots while allowing 15 goals.
Robert Morris outshot Sacred Heart, 26-23. The Pioneers controlled the draw circle with 14 wins and held the advantage in ground balls, 17-16.
The Colonials close out their two-game homestand on Sunday, March 30 when they welcome Patriot League foe Bucknell to Joe Walton Stadium. Opening draw is set for 1:00 p.m.
