Ravens set program record for margin of victory

RINDGE, N.H. (March 11, 2016) – Senior midfielder Lauren Beville (Jamesville, N.Y.) became the fifth player in program history to score 10-plus points in a game and senior attack Nicole Dale (Ronkonkoma, N.Y.) set a program record with five assists in a game on Friday afternoon, as the Franklin Pierce University women's lacrosse team opened the season with a 22-2 win over Post. Beville finished with 6-4-10, while Dale added 4-5-9, as the duo led the Ravens in the non-conference contest at Sodexo Field.

With the win, Franklin Pierce opens its season at 1-0, while Post falls to 0-3.

The 20-goal margin of victory established a new program record for Franklin Pierce, eclipsing a 19-4 win over Southern Connecticut State on April 7, 2002. The 22 goals were the fourth-most in program history and it marked the 10th time the team had scored 20 or more goals in a game. Dale's five assists surpassed a four-assist outing by Jordan Baillargeon '11 against American International on March 26, 2011 for the school record. Meanwhile, Beville's 10-point performance tied Lauren Stille '10 for fifth-best single-game scoring total in program annals.

The game was all Ravens from the opening draw control on Friday afternoon, as Franklin Pierce opened the scoring just 16 seconds into the proceedings, when Dale set up Beville to open the scoring. It would be the first of four times the former set up the latter on the day, with Beville returning the favor on one of Dale's four goals.

Franklin Pierce would score the only 13 goals of the first half and took most of the drama out of the game well before the halftime break. The Ravens struck seven times in the opening 10 minutes, including three of Beville's six goals and a pair from sophomore attack Anna Wilbert (Bohemia, N.Y.).

Trailing 13-0 coming out of halftime, Post opened the second half's scoring 51 seconds in, when sophomore midfielder Sam Rodriguez put home her team-leading fifth goal of the season. After Beville set up sophomore attack Julia Miller (Westfield, Mass.) and Wilbert assisted sophomore midfielder Caitlin Sweeney (Shirley, N.Y.), Post would answer with a goal from senior attack Jordyn Woltmann to cut the gap to 15-2.

However, it would be the final time Post would score on the afternoon. Franklin Pierce rattled off the game's final seven goals, including two goals from sophomore midfielder Briana Sweeney (Shirley, N.Y.) and a goal and two assists from Caitlin Sweeney, as the Ravens rolled to the 22-2 victory.

After Beville (6-4-10) and Dale (4-5-9), Wilbert chipped in five points for the Ravens as well (2-3-5). Beville and Briana Sweeney collected four ground balls each, while Caitlin Sweeney hauled in a game-high eight draw controls. Briana Sweeney caused three turnovers along the way. The Ravens finished 2-for-6 on free-position shots and were successful in eight of their nine clears.

For Post, Woltmann (goal), Rodriguez (goal) and sophomore midfielder Toni Deren (assist) all finished with one point each. Freshman goalkeeper Monica Kochurin picked up a team-best three ground balls, while Rodriguez snagged three draw controls. The Eagles came up empty on two free-position shots and went 4-for-11 in clear attempts.

Junior goalkeeper Denise Hunt (Hull, Mass.) started, played the first half and stopped all three shots on her goal to pick up the win (1-0) in net for Franklin Pierce. Sophomore Madison Murray (Berkley, Mich.) made her collegiate debut in the second half for the Ravens and stopped one of the three shots on her net.

At the other end of the field, Kochurin (0-1) made five saves against 27 shots on goal in the crease for Post.

The Ravens return to the field on Tuesday, March 15, when they travel to St. Thomas Aquinas for a non-conference contest. Game time is set for 1 p.m. at Spartan Field in Sparkill, N.Y.

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).