Strong Second Half Effort Gives Women's Lacrosse Second Straight MEC Championship

FROSTBURG, Md. – The Frostburg State Women's Lacrosse team used a second half comeback effort to defeat Charleston (WV) in the 2024 MEC Championship Game for their second consecutive title.
 
UC won the opening draw, as a minute and a half into the contest, each team traded a turnover, with the Golden Eagles able to convert their second look at offense into the game's opening goal from Madison Partridge. In net, junior Nicole Gray helped the Bobcats stave off a two-minute penalty with a pair of saves, then came up with another inside the seven-minute mark, with Charleston whistled for a foul to put FSU a woman up. After getting the clear, junior Kerri Hayes worked her way into the arc and was fouled, earning herself a free position which she converted to tie things at 1-1.
 
Golden Eagle netminder Megan Liston was able to make a stop on Frostburg's next possession to get her side the ball back, but junior Megan Keller came up with a caused turnover, which led to the sophomore connection of Emily Lamoreaux to Neila Haney and a 2-1 Bobcat lead. UC wasted no time hitting back, as Darby Stolz converted a free position attempt a minute later, then Liston came up with another save with 13 seconds left to take the game into the second tied 2-2.
 
Stolz won the opening draw and 60 seconds into the period, Gianni Blundell called her own number to give the visitors a 3-2 lead. Liston stopped another FSU shot, then as the teams exchanged turnovers, Blundell fed Partridge for a 4-2 score and forcing a Frostburg timeout. Blundell took the resulting draw but turned it over to Haney, leading to three straight Bobcat shots that all were kept out by Liston over the course of two minutes. After finally getting the clear, Partridge pushed the Golden Eagle lead to three with a free position halfway through the quarter.
 
Each defense stood firm for the next seven minutes, with Liston making three saves and Frostburg causing three UC turnovers with the score still at 5-2. Inside the final two minutes, Stolz thought she had another score to her tally, but was whistled for an aggressive follow-through, canceling her goal out and putting the Bobcats on the advantage. Senior Camden DeMaio needed just 30 seconds to convert the woman-up chance, then junior Savanna Reitz took the resulting draw, as the ball eventually made its way to Hayes to fire home and bring FSU within 5-4 at the end of the half.
 
Bobcat Head Coach Taylor Cline was able to light a fire under her squad during the halftime talk, as Haney won the first draw out of the break before Charleston was penalized once more with a yellow card. DeMaio stepped up again, sweeping home her free position chance to tie the game at 5-5. Frostburg continued to limit the Golden Eagles' possessions, with senior Anna Kearney and sophomore Jessie Bare both coming up with caused turnovers over the next three minutes. After getting the clear, Hayes was fouled in the arc and gave FSU their first lead since the opening quarter at 6-5 with 10 minutes left in the frame.
 
Gray thwarted any hope of Charleston momentum with a huge free position save, as 20 seconds later, junior Julia Badolato was found by Haney for a 7-5 score. UC called a timeout in hopes of stopping the Frostburg run, of which neither team had much offense over the next six minutes. With under three to go, the Haney-Badolato connection paid off once again, putting FSU ahead by three. Hayes drew another foul, but Liston saved the resulting free position, as graduate Lilly Stephens picked up the ball, played a one-two with Haney, and polished off the 5-0 quarter for a 9-5 Frostburg advantage at the end of three.
 
The Golden Eagles took the first draw of the final quarter, but couldn't get their offense going as Bare, Haney, and sophomore Isabelle Kelly each caused a turnover to keep them off the board. The latter's came as FSU was down a player, as while getting the clear, Lamoreaux passed in front to Badolato to put the hosts in double digits up 10-5. Kelly came up trumps again a minute later, with another CT leading to Lamoreaux scoring her second for a six-goal lead. As the Bobcats kept up the pressure, DeMaio hit the post, followed by a Hayes caused turnover and Haney burying a free position for a 12-5 contest and another Charleston timeout.
 
Seeing the clock tick down, UC finally got their offense churning, forcing Gray into a pair of saves before converting on a woman-up chance with just under six to go to put the deficit at 12-6. The sides went back-and-forth for the next five minutes, trading turnovers and each goalkeeper picking up a save. Just seconds after Frostburg gave the ball away, sophomore Daniella Boss immediately got them possession back with a CT, then passing to Stephens to fire home for FSU's final goal. In the last 30 seconds, the Bobcats were penalized for having too many players on the field, which gave the Golden Eagles the chance to put away the last goal of the game, resulting in a 13-7 final.
 
Haney led all players with five points on a goal and four assists, as Hayes and Badolato each had a hat trick and Lamoreaux, DeMaio, and Stephens put in two scores apiece. Keller, Boss, Kearney, and Kelly all caused problems for UC on the defensive end, each causing three turnovers, with the latter also picking up a team-high four groundballs. Gray made six saves in net, while Haney nabbed a game-high six draw controls in the effort.
 
During the postgame celebrations, the MEC also recognized the All-Tournament team, with the selections being:
Rylee Anderson, Davis & Elkins
Ari Hinton, Davis & Elkins
Gianni Blundell, Charleston
Megan Liston, Charleston
Madison Partridge, Charleston
Camden DeMaio, Frostburg State
Nicole Gray, Frostburg State
Kerri Hayes, Frostburg State
Isabelle Kelly, Frostburg State
Neila Haney, Frostburg State (MEC Tournament MVP)
 
With the win, Frostburg concludes their season at 13-5, while Charleston finishes at 10-8.