WEST LONG BRANCH, N.J.- Monmouth University's women's lacrosse team (0-2) dropped their 2012 home opener on Wednesday, 13-4, to the United States Naval Academy (3-1) on Kessler Field.
Navy, which is the two-time Patriot League defending champions, sprinted out to a 7-1 halftime lead including five straight markers to end the half. The Midshipmen held a 31-20 advantage in shots, including a 20-9 margin in the first frame. Freshman goaltender Katie Donohoe (Peterborough, Ontario/Holy Cross Secondary School) made 12 saves in net for the Hawks.
"I didn't think we played bad," said head coach Denise Wescott. "I thought our defense stood up to all of their pressure. They are machines, they are really physical and fast. Our defense made them really work to get goals. Our goalie made some great saves. We brought the ball up the field really well but we struggled at times offensively. We were creating looks on offense but weren't taking good shots. We need to get possession more, 15-4 on draw controls was killing us."
Monmouth scored the first two goals of the second half, on shots by senior Sam Lillo (Short Hills, N.J./Milburn) and sophomore Danielle Rakowitz (Montville, N.J./Montville) but Navy answered with a pair of goals of its own to take 9-3 advantage. Lillo assisted on the third and final MU goal, feeding senior captain Erica Abendschoen (West Caldwell, N.J./James Caldwell) with 10:33 to play. The Midshipmen scored the final four goals of the game to finish the scoring at 13-4.
Senior Molly O'Brien (Kennett Square, Pa./Unionville) had a goal and an assist while junior defender Gianna D'Urso (Fairfield, N.J./West Essex) registered three caused turnovers on the day. Navy's Molly Hamilton and Kathy Young each had four goals on the day. Jasmine DePompeo and Aimee Gennaro each had two goals in the win.
The Navy goalies combined for nine saves, including six in the second frame. The Mids were 5-of-8 on free position attempts, while MU was 2-for-7. Navy, who is now 21-0 against teams from the Northeast Conference, held a decisive 15-4 advantage on draw controls.
The Hawks are back home on Sunday for face reigning America East champions Stony Brook at 1 p.m.
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