RINDGE, N.H. (March 13, 2017) – Playing in chilled, blustery conditions in the run-up to Winter Storm Stella, the sisters Sweeney made the endeavor worthwhile for the Franklin Pierce University women's lacrosse team at Sodexo Field on Monday afternoon. The twin junior midfielders, Caitlin (7-0-7) and Briana (5-2-7) combined for 12 goals and 14 points on the day, leading the way for the Ravens in a 16-9, non-conference win over Shepherd.

With the win, Franklin Pierce improves to 2-0, while Shepherd falls to 0-6.

Shepherd opened the scoring just 34 seconds into the proceedings on Monday, as senior midfielder Haley Price struck on a free-position shot for her ninth goal of the season. From there, the Ravens seized control of the first half, with five of the next six goals, over a span of nearly 17 minutes. Caitlin Sweeney (Shirley, N.Y.) had the first three Franklin Pierce goals of the game, missing out on a natural hat trick only because junior midfielder Courtney Matthews struck for Shepherd at the 9:38 mark. Briana Sweeney (Shirley, N.Y.) added a goal and an assist on the run as well, as she set up a goal by junior attack Anna Wilbert (Bohemia, N.Y.) with 6:46 to play in the half to make it a 6-2 game.

The two teams split four goals over the final 5:31 of the opening frame to make it an 8-4 Franklin Pierce lead heading into halftime. Each Sweeney struck again for the Ravens, while senior attack Brooke Hunley scored the first two of her three goals for the Rams.

Shepherd made it a contest again with four of the first six goals coming out of halftime, with the four goals coming from four different players: senior midfielder Courtney Schwiegerath, Price, Matthews and senior attack Alex Green. The latter's third goal of the campaign cut the Franklin Pierce lead to 10-8 with 20:12 left in regulation.

The Ravens regained control from there however, putting the game out of reach by rattling off the next six goals and ballooning the lead to 16-8. Briana Sweeney struck three times in the run, while Caitlin Sweeney added a pair, including a strong individual effort with 1:29 to play, as she came out of the left-wing corner, beat her defender with a burst of speed, got the goalkeeper to bite on a shot fake and then put the shot over the goalie's shoulder and into the net for her seventh and final goal of the afternoon.

Shepherd added a goal from Hunley, her team-leading 12th of the season, with 1:13 to play, to cap the scoring and create the 16-9 final.

While the Sweeney twins did most of the heavy lifting, freshman attack Morgan Riley (Jamesville, N.Y.) (1-1-2) and Wilbert (2-0-2) both provided multiple points for Franklin Pierce as well. The Sweeneys attempted 30 shots between them, with Caitlin chalking up 18 and Briana accounting for 12.

Briana Sweeney filled out the rest of her stat line with four ground balls, four draw controls and four caused turnovers. Freshman midfielder Sarah Waldrep (North Andover, Mass.) picked up four ground balls as well, while Waldrep, senior defender Taylor Wilkinson (Wallingford, Conn.) and junior defender Megan Schaeffer (Brookhaven, N.Y.) all caused two turnovers each.

For Shepherd, Hundley led the way with three goals, while Price (2-1-3) added a trio of points as well, and Matthews put home a pair of goals. Schwiegerath corralled five draw controls, while five different Rams caused one turnover each.

Senior goalkeeper Denise Hunt (Hull, Mass.) finished with six saves against 15 shots on goal to pick up the win (2-0) in goal for Franklin Pierce. In the other crease, Shepherd junior Casey Hickman (0-6) collected 18 saves against 34 shots on goal and suffered the loss. Franklin Pierce enjoyed a 46-16 edge in shot attempts in the game.

With Thursday's scheduled game already postponed due to the incoming winter storm, the Ravens are now scheduled to return to the field on Saturday, March 18, when they travel to Stonehill for a Northeast-10 Conference. Game time is set for 1 p.m. at W.B. Mason Stadium in Easton, Mass.

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 lacrosse apparel can do so at the Department of Athletics' online store (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu/store).