PURCHASE, N.Y. – Batting both an explosive offense and horrendous weather, the Manhattanville College women's lacrosse team was defeated by visiting Emmanuel College 21-11 on Wednesday night. The Valiants are now off to a 1-1 start to begin the season.

With rain falling from the opening draw, the teams combined for 18 total goals over the first half. The Valiants took control of a 3-1 lead through the opening eight minutes. Colleen MacNeil (Mahopac, N.Y./Mahopac) provided the opening spark, scoring 1:48 into the game with her fourth goal of the season. The Saints pulled even with 8:44 left in the quarter thanks to Madeline Wright, but a Gianna Mott (Ronkonkoma, N.Y./Sachem North) free position goal put the home team ahead 1:12 later. It took the Valiants just 23 seconds to strike again as Meghan DeBellis (New Fairfield, Conn./New Fairfield) capitalized on an Emmanuel green card to score a player-up tally, assisted by MacNeil.

The Saints took control over the final five minutes of the quarter, scoring five times to take a lead they would not surrender. Goals for Livia Fedele and Avery Robillard tied things up before Wright scored her second of the quarter to put the guests ahead with 3:10 remaining. Rachael Canedy brought the Saints lead up to two before Wright completed the first quarter hat trick with 41 seconds remaining to put Emmanuel ahead 6-3 through the opening 15.

The Valiants put an end to the Saints' scoring streak with the first two goals of the second as DeBellis notched her second player-up goal before MacNeil got into the goal column again with 9:54 left in the half. The next three goals belonged to the Saints, with Kaci Pierce (Niantic, Conn./East Lyme) getting Manhattanville back on the score board with MacNeil collecting another assist to move the score to 9-6. The Saints once again erupted in the closing minutes of the quarter, scoring three more times before the halftime horn. Wright's fourth tally of the half was sandwiched between a pair of Dejaliyah Srimouksavanh goals to put the Saints up 12-6.

The weather worsened as the second half got underway as the rain continued to pour down harder. Both teams struggled to control the slippery ball and navigate the slick turf with the lowest-scoring quarter of the game. The Saints wasted little time as Brianna Stephenson scored just ten seconds into the half to put the Saints up by a touchdown. The Valiants ended Emmanuels' 4-0 run with a Pietra Cabral (Mineola, N.Y./Mineola) goal from Pierce. Five minutes later, the sophomore duo switched roles as Cabral assisted Pierce to move the score to 13-8. Srimouksavanh scored Emmanuel's second and final goal of the third with 2:10 left in the quarter before Pierce scored her third of the game to close out the third with the Valiants trailing 14-9.

Pierce struck again 1:20 into the fourth with a player-up goal to pull the Valiants within four. Wright and MacNeil traded tallies to hold the deficit in place. Despite the effort to get back into the game, the Valiants were only able to keep the Saints contained for so long as Emmanuel ended the game with six straight goals to earn the 21-11 win.

Wednesday night marked the most goals the Valiants had surrendered in a game since 2022 when they allowed 22 goals against USMMA in the Skyline Championship Semifinals.

MacNeil also served as one of the Valiants' top defensive performers, leading the team with six ground balls, five caused turnovers and six draw controls. Mott and Julia Huertas (Shirley, N.Y./William Floyd) both finished the night with three grounders, while Cabral forced three takeaways. On the draw, Sydney Natale (Greenwich, Conn./Greenwich) finished behind only MacNeill with four draw controls.

The Skyline Conference Defensive Player of the Week Jacee Russello (Hope Valley, R.I./North Kingstown Senior) was tested early and often throughout the contest, facing 43 total shots. The rookie made 13 saves in the loss, setting a new personal best.

Up Next
The Valiants get their first look at road action on Tuesday when the team heads up to Albany to take on Sage at 4 p.m.

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