Six goals in each half give Salve Regina women's lacrosse win over Nichols, 12-8

MIDDLETOWN, R.I. - Salve Regina University women's lacrosse defeated Nichols College, 12-8, at a rainy and snowy, wind-filled Gaudet Field in Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) action.

It took a while for both teams to feel out the conditions on the field with strong winds, and a constant mix of rain and snow making passes difficult to see and handle. The game went scoreless until 16:26 when Sarah Woods (East Lyme, Conn.) scored off free position to give Salve Regina the 1-0 lead.

The Seahawks would lead 2-0 but face the Bison with man-up. Lindsay O'Connel (Danvers, Mass.) would convert for the Bison and it was 2-1 with 11:48 to play. 

Salve Regina scored four straight to close the half including three goals in the final 1:34 to take a 6-1 lead into the break.

The Seahawks seemed ready to cruise to victory but the the Bison mounted a furious comeback to draw within one late in the second half. Katie Kline (Brookfield, Conn.) scored man-down with 23:18 left in the second half to make it 8-2 in favor of Salve Regina. From there the Bison outscored the Seahawks 6-1 to bring it to a one goal game at 9-8 with 13:31 to play. 

Alyssa Bufis (Linden, N.J.) who had opened Nichols' scoring in the second half, scored three straight goals as part of the run to give her four goals on the afternoon.

The Seahawks had dominated the first half because of their efforts off the draw. The Bison dominated off the draw in the second half fueling their comeback, sprinting of draw control and scoring before the Seahawks could get set defensively.

With their lead whittled down to one, the Seahawks remained poised and began to scrap more off the draw and were able to get control to stymie the Bison's pressure. 

The Seahawks would score the final three goals of the game to ice it and preserve the victory to remain undefeated at home this season. Jessie Severino (Branford, Conn.), Kline, and Woods scored the final goals for Salve Regina, with Woods' serving as a hat-trick to cap off the afternoon.

Katie Jones (Derry, N.H.) made 10 saves for the Seahawks to earn her first win of 2015, while Katherine Cotton (Kennebnk, Mass.) stopped 10 of the 22 she faced in the loss for Nichols.

With the win the Seahawks improve to 3-5 on the season and 1-2 in the CCC. Nichols falls to 1-5 overall and 0-2 in conference play.

The Bison will be back in action on Tuesday March 31 when they take on Curry College. The Seahawks will host Roger Williams that night at 5 p.m.