PHILADELPHIA – Senior attacker
Stephanie Kelly set a new program record for career assists as the Saint Joseph's women's lacrosse team held on for a 12-10 victory over Duquesne at Sweeney Field on Saturday afternoon.
Kelly fed
Lauren Figura for the Hawks' first goal of the day to notch the 85th assist of her collegiate career. That breaks the previous mark held by fellow Aussie, former teammate, and current assistant coach
Rebecca Lane '19, who tallied 84 between 2016 and 2019.
HOW IT HAPPENED
• Duquesne (2-2 overall, 0-2 Atlantic 10) had the better of play early, scoring four of the game's first five goals. Kelly's record-breaking assist set up Figura for the Hawks' only goal until
Sam McGee scored with 10:29 to go to make it a 4-2 game.
• The Dukes would end up taking a 6-3 lead into halftime after a goal by
Emma O'Neill was sandwiched between a pair of Duquesne tallies.
• Saint Joseph's (6-4 overall, 3-0 Atlantic 10) came out of the break with a purpose, ripping off seven consecutive goals to take the lead. Kelly opened the scoring and then set up
Riley Evans to bring the Hawks back within a goal; Kelly then netted her second of the day and Figura scored 26 seconds later to give the Hawks their first lead of the day.
•
Bridget Cerciello followed with a natural hat trick, scoring three times in a span of less than four minutes, to extend the advantage to 10-6 with 17:19 to play.
• Rilee Bradshaw ended the run with a goal for the visitors, but McGee netted two more, both on assists from
Alyssa Manley, to make it a 12-7 game with 10:20 on the clock.
• The Dukes clawed back into it, scoring three times in a span of a minute and 40 seconds, but the Hawk defense held firm over the final 7:20, including a pair of saves from
Amber Weedon, to keep Duquesne at bay and hang on for the win.
BEHIND THE BOX SCORE
• Kelly pushed the record up to 86 assists and counting through 55 career games in the Crimson and Gray. She also hit the 200-point plateau for her career, ranking her third in SJU history; she currently sits nine points behind Lane for second and 43 points behind Shannon Feite '97's career record of 243.
• Kelly led the Hawks with four points, while Cerciello and McGee's hat tricks gave them three apiece. Bradshaw and Maddie Hart each scored four times for Duquesne to lead all scorers.
• Hart scooped up five ground balls, corralled 10 draws, and caused three turnovers for the Dukes.
Julia Pash notched six draw controls for SJU, while
Taylor Newman-Farr caused three turnovers; the pair each grabbed three ground balls as well.
• Weedon made 10 saves and picked up three ground balls of her own in the win; Rachel O'Toole and Mady Piersielak combined for eight saves in defeat.
• The Hawks enjoyed a 25-24 advantage in shots, while Duquesne held the edge on the draw, 13-11.
UP NEXT
The Hawks hit the road for a pair, visiting UMass on Friday, April 9, and La Salle on Sunday, April 11.
