Boxscore

SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Sophomore Melissa Goncalves (Holtsville, N.Y./Sachem East) led the Valiants with five goals and senior Jen Ascencio (Monroe, N.Y./Millbrook School) had one to give both players 100 points for their careers, but that was not enough as Skidmore College defeated the Manhattanville women's lacrosse team, 21-10, in the Valiants' non-conference finale on Wednesday evening at Wachenheim Field.

Goncalves' five points move her into ninth place in school history with 103 points (81 goals, 22 assists), while also making her just the fifth player in the program's annals to crack triple digits in her first two seasons. Ascencio, meanwhile, ended the night with exactly 100 points (80 goals, 20 assists), good enough for 10th place all-time after reaching the 20-point mark for the fourth consecutive year.

Goncalves led the team with her five goals, making her the only Valiant to record more than two points on the night. Freshman Casandra Honovich (Cortlandt Manor, N.Y./Walter Panas) added to her school rookie record with a pair of goals, while senior Emelda Ogweta (Portland, Maine/Kents Hill) had two points on a goal and an assist as well.

The match started out evenly on Wednesday, as goals by Ogweta and Goncalves were matched by two tallies from Kimberly Segalas to knot the score at two 7:44 into the contest. Skidmore took its first lead soon after on a goal by Lauren Madden, only to have senior Darby Webber (Walpole, Mass./Walpole) score from the eight-meter line less than a minute later to again tie the score with 17:59 left in the half.

Goncalves scored her second of the game with 12:41 remaining to put the visitors back up by one at 4-3, but the Thoroughbreds came storming back with seven straight goals in the final 11:32 of the half to turn a one-goal deficit into a 10-4 lead at the break.

The Skidmore run continued into the second half with five more goals, allowing the home team to open up a 15-4 advantage. Manhattanville bounced back with four straight goals to close the gap slightly with 12:50 left, as Ascencio recorded her 100th point and was followed by one from Honovich and two from Goncalves. But five more Skidmore goals over the next five and a half minutes closed the door on any Valiant comeback attempt.

Skidmore had a 37-25 edge in shots on the night, requiring senior netminder Kirstin Betsill (Parkton, Md./Hereford) to make 10 saves. Her counterpart, Rachel Klein, made nine stops for the home team.

Manhattanville (7-8, 6-5 MAC) will close out the regular season on Saturday with a playoff berth on the line, as the Valiants face off with Lebanon Valley College at GoValiants.com Field starting at 1 p.m. with the winner advancing to the Middle Atlantic Conference Tournament and the loser going home for the year. Skidmore (10-6, 5-2 Liberty League) will close out its regular-season slate on Friday at 4 p.m. against Hamilton College.