CLINTON, NY – The Union women's lacrosse team will look for a third straight Liberty League Championship as the #2 seed Dutchwomen, winners of last year's title, defeated #3 seed William Smith, 13-7 at Hamilton College's Campus Road Athletic Field Friday. Union, 10-4, will take on Hamilton (14-2), which won the other semifinal, 19-5 over fourth seed Vassar.
Senior attack Allie Toney (Bayville, NY/Locust Valley), a first team All-Liberty League selection, scored four goals and Union got two goals each from Keri Messa (Saratoga Springs, NY/Hotchkiss School), Erin Lawson (Flourtown, PA/Springside) and Liz Zamore (South Hero, VT/Essex) in the victory, Union's second over William Smith this season. The Dutchwomen won at home, 19-5 on April 21. Stephanie Cronan (Marblehead, MA/Marblehead) and Liz Zamore (South Hero, VT/Essex) had two assists each in the triumph.
Union had a 30-23 shot advantage, including an 18-10 shot lead at halftime, and had an 18-15 lead in ground balls on the day. The Dutchwomen converted three of six free position attempts while the Herons were two for five in free position opportunities. Union had 24 turnovers to William Smith's 23, and had 26 fouls while the Herons were whistled for 16 fouls.
Goaltender Stephanie Burlton (Coquitlam, BC/Milton Academy) and William Smith goalie Morgan Baird each made 11 saves on the day. Sarah Dillon, who joined Toney on the league's first team, led the Herons with three goals and two assists..
Union jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first 1:28, on goals by Messa and Zamore. Dillon put the Herons on the board at 22:02, but Toney scored a natural hat trick, including two free position goals, for a 5-1 lead with 14:10 left in the first half. Michaela Parnell had an unassisted goal with 11:38 left, but Caitlin Cuozzo (Norfolk, MA/King Phillip Regional) scored on a free position 25 seconds later, and Zamore made it 7-2 12 seconds after the Cuozzo's tally. But in the final 7:21 of the first half, the Herons scored three times, as Rachel Stahl, Molly Fitzgerald and Brittany Callaghan all scored to pull William Smith to within two. Callaghan notched her first of the season with 2:33 left, and two fo the goals were assisted by Dillon.
Dillon notched her league leading 47th of the season on a free position shot 4:11 into the second half to get William Smith to trail by just one at 7-6. But Union opened it up again with four goals in a span of just under eight minutes, as Lawson, Emily Bryson (Charlestown, MA/Gov. Dummer), Toney and Allie Cuozzo (Norfolk, MA/King Phillip Regional) gave Union an 11-6 lead with 15:26 left in the second stanza. Messa and Lawson made it six straight Union goals by 4:19 left, and Dillon notched #48 with 2:51 remaining for the 13-7 final.
With the four goals by Toney, who has 34 on the season, she became the seventh player in Union women's lacrosse history to record 150 career points, as she has 150 entering Saturday's championship game. Toney is one of the seniors who now has 51 career wins, and Union will look for a third straight Liberty League Championship tomorrow against the 14-2 Continentals. Hamilton, ranked #6 nationally, has a 14-game winning streak after an 0-2 start, and defeated the Dutchwomen, 13-6 at Union's Bailey Field on April 6.
This is Union's fourth straight appearance in the league tournament's championship game. Hamilton has appeared in all five tournaments but is looking to win the championship for the first time.
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