Farmingdale State - 15, #15 Oneonta State - 14
Farmingdale, N.Y. - The Farmingdale State women's lacrosse team upset the #15 ranked Oneonta State today, 15-14, in a non-conference game in Farmingdale, N.Y. The Rams improved to 5-0 overall with the win, while the Red Dragons drop to 5-2.
Farmingdale State grabbed a quick 2-0 lead with unassisted goals from junior midfielder Nicole Marzocca (North Babylon, N.Y.) and junior midfielder Alyssa Handel (Medford, N.Y.). Both teams traded goals and the Rams held the lead until the 19-minute mark when senior midfielder Casey Sarle (West Islip, N.Y.) tied the game at 4-4.
Oneonta scored the next three of four goals to hold a 7-5 advantage, before Handel scored two straight to tie the game at 7-7. Sophomore attack Kimberly Pepe (Levittown, N.Y.) gave Farmingdale an 8-7 lead but the Red Dragons ended the half with two scores to hold the 9-8 halftime edge.
In the second half, Handel scored her fifth goal of the game just 1:20 in, tying the score at 9-9. Farmingdale held Oneonta to one goal over the next 15 minutes, as they built up a 14-10 lead with 12 minutes to play. The Red Dragons made a comeback scoring three straight in the final three minutes, but freshman goalkeeper Krista Spagnoletta (West Islip, N.Y.) made three crucial saves in the final minutes.
Spagnoletta tied her career-high with 20 saves for Farmingdale State, while Marzocca and Handel led the offense. Marzocca notched four goals, two assists, three caused turnovers and three ground balls. Handel finished with a team-high five goals. Junior midfielder Christy Thoden (Bayport, N.Y.) totaled a season-high 12 draw controls, along with four ground balls and three caused turnovers. Sophomore attack Janisha Sanchez (Brentwood, N.Y.) tallied three goals and an assist.
Oneonta saw three goals each from junior midfielder Nikki Fioretti (Yorktown Heights, N.Y.), junior attack Nicole Boylan (Massapequa, N.Y.) and junior attack Kiera McNally (East Northport, N.Y.), while senior attack Chelsea Collins (St. James, N.Y.) led the team with six assists. Sarle finished with two goals and five draw controls. Junior defender Marissa Makar (Yorktown, N.Y.) totaled five ground balls and caused four turnovers.
The Rams will now host the University of New England on Monday, March 17th at 3:00 p.m.
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