Women’s Lacrosse Falls, 13-7, at Lebanon Valley in First Round of Conference Tournament

(box score)

Sophomore Megan Dunn (Oxford, PA) played solidly in net, but it was not enough for Widener in a 13-7 loss at Lebanon Valley in the first round of the Commonwealth Conference Tournament in Annville, PA.

Dunn did all she could to keep the fifth-seeded Pride (8-9) in the contest with 14 saves in the first half, one short of her previous career high for an entire contest. She ended the game with 16, many of which were point-blank stops.

Hana Krechel took over play for the Dutchmen (11-4) in the opening half, scoring three goals and adding four assists to give her squad an 8-2 halftime lead. Sam Boyce netted three goals and Bailey Benz added a goal and an assist in the half for LVC, which ended the half with a 25-11 shots edge.

Widener came out firing in the second half with four of the first six goals to close to 10-6 with 17:41 remaining. Lauren Staedt (Drexel Hill, PA) netted two of those markers with fellow senior Laura Kalbach (Lancaster, PA) adding one and one assist.

The next goal by either team looked like it would be the biggest tally. Each team had several chances, but both defenses were in lock-down mode and the score remained unchanged for exactly 11 minutes.

That was until Widener, which had just killed off a man-down situation, committed a crucial turnover in its defensive zone and LVC capitalized. Benz took a feed in front from Boyce and tallied with 6:41 to play for an 11-6 contest.

Kalbach had two goals and two assists, Staedt netted two goals, Pinky Schneider (Moorestown, NJ) dished two assists and fellow sophomore Mackenzie Lindquist (Ocean City, NJ) posted nine draw controls for the Pride. Senior Julia Costello (Brookhaven, PA) was held without a point and closes her career sixth in school history with 200 points, fifth with 66 assists and seventh with 134 goals.

Boyce scored four times with Krechel adding three goals and five assists for the Dutchmen, who entered as the No. 4 seed.

"I am very proud of our team and the way we fought hard throughout the entire game," Widener coach Julie Mazer said. "Megan Dunn was spectacular and kept us in the game in the first half. We had some critical turnovers in the second half that ultimately allowed LVC to be in control down the stretch. We have come a long way since the beginning of the season in all facets of the game and I am looking forward to continuing the growth of our team. Thanks to our seniors and all they have done for the program throughout their time at Widener. We will miss you all."

Widener was making its first appearance in a league tournament since playing in the first round of the 2010 Middle Atlantic Conference Tournament.

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