NEW PALTZ, N.Y. – The Mahattanville University women's lacrosse team was defeated on Wednesday afternoon, falling 23-2 at SUNY New Paltz. The Valiants fall to 1-1 on their three-game Spring Break road trip, dropping to 1-3 overall on the season with the loss.

Pietra Cabral (Mineola, N.Y./Mineola) and Kaci Pierce (Niantic, Conn./East Lyme) accounted for the Valiants' two goals. Cabral scored her team-leading 12^th goal of the season with an unassisted man-up tally halfway through the first quarter, while Pierce picked up her fifth goal of the year on a free position shot with 5:40 left in the second.

Mary Kopf (Congers, N.Y./Clarkstown High School North) got the start at goalie for the Valiants, making eight saves and allowing 18 goals in her 42:04 in the cage. Megan McDonald (Pearl River, N.Y./Pearl River) played the final 17:56, allowing five goals and making two stops.
Kopf and Mariah Stephens (Mission Viejo, Calif./Mission Viejo) had three ground balls each to lead the Valiants' defensive efforts. Stephens also accounted for three of Manhattanville's six caused turnovers, with Lauren Mumaw (Kingsville, Md./Mercy High School) and Bridget Sonju (Canton, Conn./Canton High School) each adding one.

Jocelyn Mazo (Mamaroneck, N.Y./Mamaroneck) led all players on both teams with seven draw controls, matching her career-high from the Valiants' season opener against Hartwick on Feb. 20.

Wednesday was the most goals allowed by the Valiants since 2024 when the team surrendered 24 goals in an Apr. 6 loss to Montclair State. It was also Manhattanville's largest margin of defeat since Apr. 13 2019 when the Valiants were defeated by Misericordia, also by a final of 23-2.

New Paltz scored twice in the opening five minutes of play, getting goals from Helena Willis and Mia Baldinger before Cabral scored at the 7:40 mark, capitalizing on a Hawk green card. New Paltz dominated the closing six minutes of the quarter, scoring five more time before the first intermission, highlighted by a first quarter hat trick by Lexi Atwater.

The Hawks continued to be relentless on the attack, finishing the first half with a 19-3 advantage in the shots on goal department. New Paltz scored three more goals to extend their run to eight-straight goals before Pierce got the Valiant back on the board with her free-position tally. New Paltz scored four more times over the final 4:09 of the half, furthering the lead up to 14-2.

New Paltz outscored the Valiants 9-0 over the second half, with Manhattanville limited to just seven total shots and three on target. The Hawks added four more goals to the lead in the third before striking for five more tallies in the fourth.

Up Next
The Valiants look to end the break on a high note, returning to action on Saturday at Arcadia at 1 p.m. for the first meeting between the two programs since 2014.

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