PHILADELPHIA- Monmouth University (5-2) outscored La Salle University (4-3) 4-1 over the final 8:44 of Wednesday night's women's lacrosse match to earn its fifth victory of the season, 13-8 over the Explorers.

Seniors senior Rachel Feirstein (St. James, N.Y./Smithtown East) and Carissa Franzi (Fairfield, N.J./West Essex) each tallied season-high five points on the night, with Feirstein tying a career-high with five goals in the win.  Up 9-7 with just under nine minutes to play, Monmouth rattled off four straight goals to secure the five goal win.

" It was a really physical game and but I felt like we stayed composed and played well ." said Monmouth Head Coach Denise Wescott.  "I felt like we were composed all game and kept finding the open player and moving the ball well on offense.  This win was a total team effort, we had a lot of different people help us off the bench, including Sam Savona, Rachel Obregon and Alex Marino among others.  We got the ball up the field cleanly, limited our turnovers and I thought the defense did a nice job on their offense for most of the game. "
 
It took a mere 17 seconds for La Salle's Nora McGurkin to give the Explorers a one-goal lead but MU's Franzi answered 26 seconds later with MU's first goal to tie it up.  Less than a minute later, Feirstein gave the Hawks their first lead on a free position goal.  Monmouth and La Salle traded goals before Monmouth took a 4-2 lead on a Sam Lillo (Short Hills, N.J./Milburn) goal.  The Hawks expanded their lead to three goals on Feirstein's second goal of the game, which was assisted by fellow senior Franzi with 17:07 to play in the first half.  Franzi and Renae Hill (Ellicott City, Md./Centennial) finished the scoring on the MU side of things, while McGurkin and Jackie Roebuck scored for the Explorers in the final 10 minutes as Monmouth led 7-5 going into halftime.

Monmouth got off to a fast start in the second half, pushing its lead to 8-5 after Feirstein scored her third goal of the game just 53 seconds into the frame.   After a La Salle goal cut the lead to 8-6, Monmouth freshman Rachel Obregon (Fairfax Station, Va./W.T. Woodson) scored her first of two goals on the afternoon to retain the three goal margin.  Reigning A-10 Offensive Player of the Week Melanie Sarcinello scored at the 12:15 mark before MU's offense exploded with four unanswered goals.  Feirstein added a pair of goals to her evening totals while Molly O'Brien (Kennett Square, Pa./Unionville) got her first goal of the night over that span.  La Salle got a goal with six seconds left but Monmouth walked away with a 13-8 victory.

Senior goalkeeper Kirby Mundorf (Cambridge, Md./Seton Keogh), who came into the game with the second best save percentage in the nation, had eight saves in the contest.  Franzi had three goals and two assists for a career-best five points while chipping in a ground ball.  Feirstein had five goals (including two from inside the 8-meter) two ground balls and three draw controls in the win.  Obregon added a pair of goals, while O'Brien had a goal and an assist for MU.

"Rachel Feirstein had an outstanding game, evaded the defense and was able to draw fouls when she couldn't get shots off.  Our 8-meter shots were better than I've seen in a while. We did a great job getting in and moving the goalie to hit the corners of the net. "

Lauren McDermott led the Explorers with four points on two goals and two assists.  McGurkin and Samantha Tulskie each had two goals while goaltender Megan Corliss had six saves in 52 minutes of work.  La Salle committed 35 fouls on the night, compared to Monmouth's 15, which allowed the Hawks to convert a season-best six-of-nine on free position attempts.  La Salle's defense was allowing opponents just 8.50 goals per game in 2011 heading into the game.

Monmouth will now have a nine-day layoff before facing Central Connecticut State on March 25, 2011 in New Britain, Conn.