Sophomore scores four goals

RINDGE, N.H. (March 19, 2014) – Sophomore midfielder Lauren Beville (Jamesville, N.Y.) scored four times on Wednesday afternoon, including the game-winner with 8:52 to play, as the Franklin Pierce University women's lacrosse team picked up a 7-6 win over Merrimack in Northeast-10 Conference play at Sodexo Field. Six different players scored for Merrimack in defeat.

With the win, Franklin Pierce improves to 2-2 (1-1 Northeast-10), while Merrimack falls to 1-5 (0-3 Northeast-10).

With the game tied at 4-4 coming out of halftime, Franklin Pierce scored the second half's first two goals to take a 6-4 lead. Sophomore attack Nicole Dale (Ronkonkoma, N.Y.) scored 19 seconds into the stanza, and again six minutes into the half, for two of her four points on the day.

Merrimack scored the next two goals, but used most of the second half to do so, to tie the game at 6-6. Sophomore attack Kayla Breton put away a free-position shot with 13:57 to play. Junior midfielder Giulia Palombo followed up 4:50 later to tie the game, as she finished off a feed from sophomore attack Aubrie Stouffer.

Off the ensuing draw control, Beville wound up with the ball and space to work with down the left side of the field. She cut to the net and put away her fourth and final goal of the game -- also her seventh of the season -- just 15 seconds after the Palombo goal. Beville's score gave Franklin Pierce a 7-6 lead, and it wound up being the final goal of the game. The Ravens controlled the ball for much of the final nine minutes and were able to bleed the clock down until they came away with the one-goal victory.

Earlier in the day Beville scored three of Franklin Pierce's four goals in the first half, twice scoring off assists from Dale, as each finished the afternoon with four points. Junior midfielder Megan Raposa (Tiverton, R.I.) also found the back of the net on Wednesday for the Ravens.

Statistically, the game played fairly even, with Merrimack holding a 20-18 edge in shot attempts when all was said and done. The Warriors attempted to shorten the game with a slow-paced offense, but partially undid their work by committing 13 turnovers along the way, as opposed to nine by Franklin Pierce.

Junior goalkeeper Julia Coakley (Bridgewater, Mass.) picked up four saves against 10 shots on goal to pick up the win (2-2) in net for Franklin Pierce. At the other end of the field, senior Inna Hedden stopped nine of 16 shots on her cage and took the loss (1-5) for Merrimack.

The Ravens return to the field on Saturday, March 22, when they travel to Adelphi for a Northeast-10 Conference contest. Game time is set for 1 p.m. at Motamed Field in Garden City, N.Y. Franklin Pierce next plays at home on Tuesday, March 25 against Stonehill at 6 p.m.

For more information on Franklin Pierce Athletics, please visit the official website of Franklin Pierce Athletics (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu). Also be sure to follow the Ravens through the Department of Athletics' official Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/FranklinPierceRavens), its YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/franklinpiercesports) and its Twitter feed (http://twitter.com/FPUathletics). Fans wishing to purchase Franklin Pierce women's lacrosse apparel can do so at the Department of Athletics' online store (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu/store).