ELON, N.C.  – The Monmouth women's lacrosse team's fourth-quarter comeback fell just short, falling to Elon on Friday evening, 9-8.

After trailing by a pair late, a Lauren Rismani free-position goal brought the Hawks (6-4, 0-2 CAA) within a goal in the final minute, but Elon was able to close out the victory.

Rismani tallied a team-best three points on two goals and an assist, while Sophia Lymberis also had a multi-point effort, scoring a goal and dishing an assist. In net, Katie Sullivan made 11 saves on the 20 shots she faced.

Sulivan set the pace early, making three saves in the early minutes before Brooke Lacey gave the Hawks a 1-0 lead. The Phoenix scored the next two to take the lead, but Grace Curtin finished from the doorstep to bring Monmouth level at the end of the opening 15 minutes.

Marlaina Grimm scored her team-best sixth free position goal early in the second quarter to put the visitors back on top, but two straight from Elon put Monmouth in a 4-3 hole. Berigan scored off a feed from Rismani to counter another goal from the home side, sending the Hawks into the halftime break down a goal, 5-4.

Lymberis tied the game 90 seconds after halftime, scoring on a free-position opportunity, but Elon kept the Hawks off the board for the next 12 minutes, taking a two-goal lead. Olivia Castaldo found twine in the final minute to bring Monmouth within one going into the final period.

In the fourth frame, Rismani scored with 11 minutes left, finishing a feed from Castaldo, to knot the game at 7-7 before Elon broke the deadlock with six minutes to play. Rismani hit the back of the net for the second time in the quarter with 1:18 to play, bringing the Hawks back within a goal. Monmouth won the ensuing possession, but Elon was able to stonewall the final shot attempts and run out the clock on a 9-8 victory.

Notes

• Katie Sullivan made 11 saves, marking her fifth game this season with double-digit saves and an eight-performance stop of at least 50 percent of the shots she has faced.
• Sullivan has 25 saves in her last two games
• Lauren Rismani tallied three points on two goals and her 31^st assist of the season. The graduate student has a team-best 46 points this season.
• Rismani has at least three points in nine games in 2026
• Sophia Lymberis scored a goal and tallied an assist, marking her third multi-point effort of the season and first since the team's victory over Wagner on Feb. 14.
• Marlaina Grimm scored her team-best sixth free-position goal of the season. The rookie has 14 goals this season.
• Olivia Castaldo found the back of the net for the eighth time in 2026, giving her 10 points on the season.
• Grace Curtin and Brooke Lacey each scored, their 14^th and 11^th goals of the season, respectively.

Up Next
Monmouth will have a quick turnaround when it faces Radford on Sunday in Virginia. Opening draw is set for noon on ESPN+.