MISENHEIMER, N.C. – The Manhattanville College women's lacrosse team made their long-awaited season debut on Thursday evening as the Valiants defeated Pfeiffer 16-6. The Valiants will start the year in the win column, beginning their two-game spring break trip with a 1-0 record.

The Valiants ran out to a 10-2 first half lead, scoring five goals in each of the first two quarters. The first tally of the season came out of the stick of Marisa D'Angelo (Wantagh, N.Y./MacArthur), as the senior scored her first of four goals on the day off an assist from Abbey Playle (Reading, England/Leigh High School) four and a half minutes into play. With 7:29 left in the quarter, rookie Pietra Cabral (Mineola, N.Y./Mineola) netted her first collegiate goal from Maura Kelly (Stratford, Conn./Bunnell) to put the Valiants up 2-0. Aly Hanlon got the home team on the board 46 seconds later, but the Valiants would score three times over the final 3:10 of the first to stake claim to a 5-1 advantage. Kerry Carr (New Hartford, N.Y./Millbrook School) would be involved in all three tallies, scoring the third and fifth of the quarter while assisting D'Angelo on the fourth. Carr's first strike of the game would come with an extra attacker from Cabral as the Valiants took advantage of a Falcon yellow card.

Manhattanville extended their scoring run to eight straight goals as they netted the first five scores of the second quarter. After Ally Petricca (New Hyde Park, N.Y./New Hyde Park Memorial) scored three minutes in, Cabral set up D'Angelo as the senior earned a first half trick with 10:23 to go in the half. Kaci Pierce (East Lyme, Conn./East Lyme) would add her first collegiate goal at the 8:51 mark before Petricca netted her second of the game from MacKenzie Orf (Putnam Valley, N.Y./Lakeland). The run concluded as Carr joined D'Angelo with a hatty of her own, putting Manhattanville up 10-1 with 6:23 still to play in the half. The Falcons would finally get back on the scoreboard with eight seconds left in the half from Skyla Jo Charette, sending the game into intermission with the Valiants leading by eight.

In a much more defense-dominated third quarter, the Valiants scored two of the period's three goals. Kelly and Pierce both scored on free position shots to further Manhattanville's lead to 12-2. Analise Robinson accounted for the last goal of the third for Pfeiffer.

The Valiants put the finishing touches on their win by outscoring the Falcons 4-3 over the final 15 minutes. After Robinson made it back-to-back Pfeiffer tallies, Brysha Schmidt (Cortlandt Manor, N.Y./The Millbrook School) joined the party as the third Valiant to record their first career lacrosse goal, scoring on a free position shot with 7:45 to play. Robinson would strike again for the Falcons at the 7:09 mark with the extra player before Cabral netted her second of the game with 4:40 to go. Robinson had one last goal in store for Pfeiffer, but Carr and D'Angelo would each add their fourth goals of the game over the final 2:19 to close out the 16-6 win.

Britney Sirota (Seaford, N.Y./Seaford) made seven saves in her season-debut in net. The win was the senior goalie's ninth of her career.

Playle led the defensive effort for the Valiants, collecting a team-high five ground balls and causing three turnovers. Pierce finished with three ground balls, while Lauren Sergeant (Hawthorne, N.Y./Westlake) logged two caused turnovers and a pair of ground balls in her collegiate debut.

The Valiants held a 17-8 advantage in draw controls in the game. Kelly finished with five to lead Manhattanville's effort, while Playle and Petricca were each credited with four.

Up Next
The Valiants wrap up their spring break excursion on Saturday as they take on Guilford at 11 a.m.

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