WORCESTER, Mass. (April 21, 2018) – The Franklin Pierce University women's lacrosse team was outscored on the road in the first half on Saturday afternoon, but was still within shouting distance of Assumption at the halftime break, trailing 7-4. However, Assumption netted four of the first five goals of the second half to provide separation on the way to dealing the Ravens a 15-11 loss in Northeast-10 Conference play at Multi-Sport Stadium. Senior midfielders Caitlin Sweeney (Shirley, N.Y.) and Briana Sweeney (Shirley, N.Y.) tallied four points each in defeat for the Ravens.

With the loss, Franklin Pierce falls to 6-7 (4-7 NE10), while Assumption improves to 8-6 (5-6 NE10). Though still mathematically alive, Franklin Pierce's postseason hopes are on life support following the defeat. The Ravens would need to win both their remaining games, have Assumption lose its two remaining contests and have Stonehill lose its final game as well, all in order to sneak in as the eighth and final seed to the NE10 Championship. Franklin Pierce's final two games are against Merrimack and Pace, which currently sit third and fourth in the NE10, respectively.

Franklin Pierce opened the scoring on Saturday afternoon in Worcester, as Briana Sweeney struck 2:41 into the proceedings, and Caitlin Sweeney followed with a free-position goal 5:10 into the first half.

Assumption would then rattle off the next five goals, over a span of 9:41, and would not relinquish the lead the rest of the day. Sophomore attack Jenny Bush scored her only two goals of the game in the run, while junior attack Kailyn Hart and sophomore midfielder Emily Spath added a goal and an assist each.

Each Sweeney struck on a free-position shot within the final 10 minutes of the stanza to close the gap to 5-4, but Hart provided a pair of goals to answer for Assumption. The latter of the two was a man-up goal with just 10 seconds to play in the half and gave the Greyhounds a 7-4 lead heading into the intermission.

On the other side of halftime, Assumption seized control of the game. Sophomore attack Amanda Burns struck twice, while senior attack Caitlin Graves contributed a goal and an assist, as the Greyhounds put home four of the first five goals in the second half to push the lead out to 11-5.

Franklin Pierce made things interesting again with three straight goals, including back-to-back tallies from Briana Sweeney, to cut the deficit to 11-8 with 17:17 to play. However, the Ravens would never close within three goals, as each team struck three times in the final 14 minutes and Assumption came away with the 15-11 victory.

Caitlin Sweeney (3-1-4) and Briana Sweeney (4-0-4) provided four points apiece to lead the way for Franklin Pierce, while freshman attack Caroline Lounsbury (Franklin, Mass.) scored twice. The three were the only Ravens to tally more than one point on the afternoon. Caitlin Sweeney led the team with six ground balls and six draw controls, while Briana Sweeney caused three turnovers.

Hart (4-1-5) led the way for Assumption offensively, while Bush (2-1-3), junior attack Sarah Reilly (2-1-3) and Burns (3-0-3) all added three points each. In all, nine Greyhounds contributed at least one point on the afternoon. Freshman defender Grace McDermott led Assumption with six ground balls, while Bush nabbed six draw controls. McDermott led all players with five caused turnovers.

Senior goalkeeper Madison Murray (Berkley, Mich.) finished with 12 saves against 27 shots on goal and suffered the loss (4-5) in the crease for Franklin Pierce. Sophomore netminder Kyra Goucher (8-6) stopped 13 of 24 shots to pick up the win for Assumption.

The Ravens return to the field on Wednesday, April 25, when they wrap up the home portion of their schedule by hosting Merrimack in an NE10 contest. Game time is set for 7:30 p.m. at Sodexo Field in Rindge.

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).