Steve Finkernagel

Senior Gabby Ford scored eight goals as the Lady Colonels defeated Misericordia 26-19 in the Freedom Conference semis

BIG SECOND HALF PROPELS LADY COLONELS LACROSSE INTO FREEDOM CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP GAME

5/1/2014 9:58:00 PM

Box Score

BIG SECOND HALF PROPELS LADY COLONELS LACROSSE INTO FREEDOM CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP GAME

EDWARDSVILLE, PA – After a halftime score of 10-10 Wilkes outscored Misericordia 16-9 in the second half as they won their first ever playoff game, advancing to Saturday's Freedom Conference Championship game.

With the 26-19 victory Wilkes is now 13-2 on the year while Misericordia ends their season with a record of 7-9.

Carley Smith (York, PA/Dallastown) got the scoring started for the Lady Colonels when she scored unassisted 2:09 into the game. Misericordia responded with two goals of their own when Jenny Perucca and Melina Juliano scored back-to-back goals just :08 seconds apart to give the Cougars a 2-1 advantage. Smith tied the game a minute later before Gabby Ford (Elmont, NY/Sewanhaka) put the Lady Colonels back up 3-2 with 24:38 to go in the first half. In what was a game of runs in the first half Misericordia responded with three straight goals over a 1:30 span to put the Cougars up 5-3. Madeleine Brownsey (Glenside, PA/St. Basil Academy) started the Lady Colonels three goal run when she scored with 18:51 to go in the half and Ford tallied two goals eight seconds apart to give the lead back to Wilkes at 6-5. The two teams exchanged goals on two occasions before Misericordia went on another three-goal streak to give them a two-goal lead at 10-8. Allie Elmes, Catie Viegas and Brooke North tallied the goals the first of the game for each one of them. Wilkes was able to score two goals before the half thanks to goals from Brownsey and Ford, as the Cougars and Lady Colonels went to the break tied at 10-10.

Sara Gilbert (Phoenixville, PA/Phoenixville) and Tori Kerr (Beacon, NY/Beacon) scored goals a minute apart to start the second half giving Wilkes a small 12-10 cushion. North answered for the Cougars a minute later to trim the lead to 12-11 before Brownsey and Kerr scored :30 apart to give Wilkes their biggest lead of the game at 14-11. In what was a back-n-forth affair all evening long the Cougars cut the lead to one when Kate Pagnotta and Erin Baker scored goals making it a 14-13 game. Brownsey and Kerr once again scored consecutive goals for Wilkes pushing the lead back to a three-goal cushion at 16-13. Liz Mulvey and North responded with goals of their own for the Cougars making it once again a one-goal game at 16-15. Smith and Kerr scored goals three minutes apart once again giving Wilkes a three-goal lead at 18-15. In what seemed to be a norm throughout the game, once it looked as if Wilkes was going to pull away Misericordia fought back as Juliano and Baker scored back-to-back goals less than a minute apart to put the score at 18-17 with 13:38 remaining in the game.

With under 13 minutes to play and Wilkes clinging to a 19-18 win the Lady Colonels were able to put together a 6-0 scoring run putting the game away. Kerr scored three of the goals with Smith, Brownsey and Ford chipping in with single goals. Ford finished the scoring with :05 to go giving Wilkes a 26-19 win.

Ford and Smith each had 10-point efforts as Ford scored eight goals and assisted on two, and Smith scored four goals with six helpers. Brownsey totaled nine points on the evening with six goals and three assists. Kerr scored seven goals all in the second half, while Gilbert scored a goal and had one assist. Starting goalie Morgan Galluzzo (New London, NH/Kearsarge Regional) made six saves for the Lady Colonels in picking up the win. Juliano led the Cougars with six goals, North and Baker both scored three while Mulvey and Perucca has two a-piece. Goalie Katie McLoughlin made 16 saves in the net.

Wilkes will travel to #1 seed Arcadia University on Saturday to play in the Freedom Conference Championship game. It will be the first Championship game in Lady Colonels program history. Game-time has not been set and is to be announced.

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