Worcester, MA --- Westfield State senior Maura Stack (Wilbraham, MA) registered a season-best six goals to go with one assist she helped lead the Owls to a 19-10 triumph over Worcester State in MASCAC Women's Lacrosse action this afternoon at Coughlin Field.
Westfield State (8-2, 3-0 MASCAC) was also led by sophomore Stephanie Lenhardt (Duxbury, MA) finished with a hat-trick and two helpers while classmate Amanda Bouchard (Lexington, MA) and freshman Megan Griffin (Granby, CT) both chipped in with three goals apiece.
Giffin tied for game-high honors with five draws and sophomore Bridget Everett (Lexington, MA) added four to help the Owls lead in the category, 16-14.
Defensively, freshman net minder Mimi Khampaeng (Hampden, MA) was the standout as she stopped 12 of the 22 shots she saw on net to go with five forced miscues and four ground balls.
For the Blue and Gold (7-3, 0-2 MASCAC), junior Vicki O'Brien (Canton, MA) finished with four goals and one assist while she picked up five ground balls and forced a pair of miscues. Senior Daryl Powell (Beverly, MA) notched a hat-trick to go with five draws.
Freshman Jackie Connors (Ashland, MA) recorded four ground balls and a trio of caused.
Westfield State opened the game with a commanding 5-0 run over the game's first five minutes. Griffin and Stack both had two goals each in the run.
But Worcester State answered with a 3-1 spurt to trail 6-3 with 17:18 remaining in the opening stanza. Powell, Connors and O'Brien all tallied for the hosts.
The Owls, however, closed the period by erupting with a 9-2 surge to lead 15-5 at the intermission. In the skein for Westfield State, Lenhardt turned her trick while Stack and Bouchard both hit home two goals each.
O'Brien netted a pair of markers for the Lancers early on, but the Owls scored the next three to maintain running time for the 18-8 edge with 22:34 remaining in regulation.
The Lancers ended the contest with a 3-1 run for the final score as Kilday, O'Brien and Powell all sent in goals.
The Owls led in shots (30-24) as they were 4-for-6 on free position shots. Worcester State was an effective 10-for-10 on clears and actually held the 27-16 margin in ground balls. WSU also outscored the visitors, 5-4 in the final stanza.
Senior goalie Alex Chisholm (N. Brookfield, MA) stopped three shots in the loss. With 71 career points, O'Brien moves into 10th on WSU's All-Time Scoring list with 53 goals and 18 career assists.
Both schools continue MASCAC play on Tuesday. The Blue and Gold head to Framingham State for a 4:30 match-up while Westfield State hosts Bridgewater State at 7 PM.