For the first time in program history, the Marist women’s lacrosse team is the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference champion. The Red Foxes outscored Fairfield 6-1 in the second half en route to a thrilling, 10-9 victory in New Rochelle on April 27. Senior goalkeeper Liz Burkhard (Wantagh) made 14 saves on the day and was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player, and junior Stephanie Garland (Long Valley, N.J.) scored three times to lead the Marist offense.
Senior Ali Carnabuci (Albertson) got the scoring started 6:14 into the game with an unassisted goal. Five minutes later, the Stags, who had won 17 straight, tied the score on a Kelly Barnes goal. They took their first lead three minutes later.
Liz Falco (Yorktown Heights) knotted the score at two with an unassisted tally with 11:35 left in the first half, but Fairfield (17-2) scored two straight to build a two-goal cushion.
Marist senior Lindsey Diener (Nanuet) got the Red Foxes back within one when she converted a free position shot, but again, the Stags would score two straight to push their lead to 6-3.
Falco was able to find fellow sophomore Lindsay Rinefierd (Smithtown) for a goal with 1:32 left in the half to make the score 6-4, but 10 seconds later Fairfield answered back.
Then, with only three ticks left in the stanza, Abbey Goodwin beat Burkhard to put the Stags on top 8-4 going into the break.
Marist started their comeback 2:37 into the second half when Carolyn Sumcizk (Syosset) converted a free position shot. Seven minutes later, the Red Foxes pulled within two when Garland netted her first of the game off a Sumcizk feed.
Freshman Kellie Considine (Wantagh) converted another free position attempt into a goal to pull Marist (10-8) within one with 17:08 left, and 10 seconds later, Cristin Begley (Brookville, Md.) found Garland for the tying goal.
Garland gave the Red Foxes a 9-8 lead after a Kate Noftsker (Needham, Mass.) pass, and Noftsker then found the back of the net for some insurance with 10:11 left in the contest.
The Marist defense buckled down for the remaining 10 minutes. The Stags were able to cut the Red Fox lead to one with 46 seconds left but couldn’t get the equalizer.
Burkhard only faced 11 shots in the second half as the Marist defense was fantastic. After being out-shot 24-8 in the first, the Red Foxes held a 15-11 second half shot advantage.
Fairfield picked up 35 ground balls to Marist’s 16, but the Red Foxes won 12 of 21 draw controls. Sophomore Nicole Musto (Glastonbury, Conn.) scooped up three ground balls to lead Marist and Begley had three draw controls.
Diener, Falco, Garland and Musto were all named the to All-Tournament Team.
Marist will take on Colgate in an NCAA Tournament play-in game. Colgate won the Patriot League on Sunday afternoon by defeating American. The game will be played at Colgate on May 3 at noon in Hamilton.
Earlier this season, the Red Foxes lost to Colgate 15-12 in a game played in Denver, Colo. Marist started and ended the game well, but the Raiders dominated the middle part of the game.
Seniors Ali Carnabuci (Albertson, N.Y.) and Lindsey Diener led the way for Marist. Carnabuci had six goals and an assist, and Diener had four goals and one helper.
Marist lost to the Raiders by three goals in 2007 as well.
Marist wins women’s water polo championship
Ahead 5-2 at halftime, the Marist women’s water polo team withstood a late charge from Iona to win the 2008 MAAC Women’s Water Polo Championship on April 27 at the McCann Natatorium.
This is the Red Foxes’ second MAAC Championship in three years, after winning the 2006 championship, which was also held at Marist. Junior 2M Katelin McCahill (East Grand Rapids, Mich.) was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player, while Angie Rampton (Simi Valley, Calif.) and goalie Elizabeth Davis (Albuquerque, N.M.) were named to the MAAC All-Tournament team following the game.
Marist (27-7) started the game on the right foot as Rampton scored 52 seconds in to give the Red Foxes a 1-0 lead. Iona tied the game with 4:32 on Lauren Peterson’s first goal of the match. The Red Foxes took over from that point, getting four straight goals from McCahill, Maggie Hatcher (Evanston, Ill.) and Hilary Schroeder (Santa Barbara, Calif.) to take a 5-1 lead with 2:10 to go in the second quarter. Amanda Brucia got Iona to within three before halftime, scoring with 1:13 left in the half to make the score 5-2.
Brucia scored 20 seconds into the third quarter to get the Gaels within two at 5-3. The Red Foxes would get a lift off the bench as freshman Agnes Konopka (Simi Valley, Calif.) scored with 3:01 left in the quarter to put Marist’s lead back to three, 6-3. Kristen Barnett (Houston, Texas) made the lead four goals as she put a shot past Iona goalie Kathleen Link with 7:06 left in the fourth quarter.
But Iona would not go away quietly. Lauren Peterson scored two goals 35 seconds apart to get the Gaels back within two, 7-5, with 4:03 left in the game. Alicia Keating would add a goal at the 1:44 mark to get Iona within one, and that would be as close as the Gaels would get. Iona had one last chance at goal with three seconds left, but the desperation toss went wide.
Marist now takes the MAAC’s automatic bid to the 2008 NCAA Women’s Water Polo Tournament, to be held at the Avery Aquatic Center on the campus of Stanford University in Stanford, Calif., where they will first play the host, Stanford, on May 9 at 4:30 p.m. as a No. 7 seed.
Stanford earned a No. 2 seed after a 25-4 season. The Foxes last played in the NCAA Tournament two years ago, when they lost to Stanford, 17-2.
2008 MAAC Water Polo All-Tournament Team
Lauren Garrigan, Siena
Billy Hoelck, Wagner
Amanda Brucia, Iona
Lauren Peterson, Iona
Angie Rampton, Marist
Elizabeth Davis, Marist