MILLERSVILLE, Pa. – Millersville lacrosse battled in a closely-played game but ultimately fell to No. 13 East Stroudsburg, 13–11.
The ranked Warriors had to sweat out a win against the Marauders, rally from a first-quarter deficit. There was a sister vs. sister battle as Millersville's Ashlyn Simonetti and East Stroudsburg's Abby Simonetti went head to head. Ashlyn was a major factor in the Marauders' offense as she ripped five shots and scored four.
"Ashlyn played her game today and wasn't worried about who was in the goal," said head coach Mike Faith. "She let the game come to her today, and she has done that for the past three games. Very proud of her for adjusting her style of play."
Millersville pulled away early leading 5–2 after the first quarter. The Marauders went on a hot streak and blanked the Warriors for 10 minutes. Mary Moraca and Kaleigh Funk netted a goal while Rachel Keeney netted a pair.
"I'm just so proud of the way the team played today," said Faith. "We came out on fire and just played our game."
East Stroudsburg caught up in the second quarter to level the playing field going into halftime, 6–6. Warrior attacker Sadie Kauffman, ranked second in the PSAC in goals scored, scored two back-to-back goals followed by Ariana Tucci's goal to put the Warriors up 9–6 early in the third.
"We had our chances with some extra-man opportunities in the second half and we just didn't capitalize on them," said Faith. "We will be focusing on tightening that part of our game up moving forward."
Millersville fought from a deficit but could not complete the comeback as the quick goals from their opponents solidified their fate.
"I'm excited to get back to work with the team on Monday," Faith said. "Shepherd and Kutztown are very good teams and both will be a challenge. We will continue to get better and will play our best game of the season on Wednesday."
The Marauders will resume home play on Wednesday, March 26 against Shepherd at 4 p.m.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE:
- KC O'Neill averaged two saves per quarter, totaling eight.
- The Marauders were flawless on their clears as they went 10-for-10.
- Katlyn Krebs led the team in draw controls and set a career high of nine.
