NORTHFIELD, Vt. – The Cadets finished their regular season with a perfect conference record, as they defeated the Mount Ida Mustangs, 14-9, on Monday afternoon on Howard Field.
Norwich wrapped up their season with an 8-2 overall record, and remained undefeated in the Great Northeast Athletic Conference to go 8-0 and clinch the No. 1 seed in the postseason tournament.
The Mustangs had two players net three goals apiece; Danielle Chuba and Jen Thompson. Chuba also earned the trifecta in assists, as well, as Ebony Mills scored twice and Molly Sheppard netted a point.
The Cadets, however, overwhelmed yet another GNAC opponent with their depth, as eight different players scored for the maroon and gold. The Fitzpatrick sisters teamed up to assist each other for one goal apiece during the game, as Mollie Fitzpatrick finished with a goal and an assist and Grace Fitzpatrick netted three goals and one assist.
Junior Kacey Abbriano earned a hat trick, while freshmen Courtney Saheim and junior Suzanne Whitaker finished with a pair of goals.
In net, junior Meghan Kennedy made seven saves to go 3-0 on the season, while the Mustangs goaltender, Katherine Chousa, set aside an impressive 18 shots on goal to keep Mount Ida competitive throughout the match.
When halftime came around, Norwich was in a position they had never been in during any other GNAC game this season, as they were only up by a goal. Momentum could easily switch to the first team to score in the second half.
The Mustangs had put themselves on the board first, as Mills scored three minutes into play. The Fitzpatrick sisters had the answer, as Mollie set Grace up for her first goal of the game and tied it at 1-all.
Junior Danielle Del Dotto scored less than ten seconds later to give Norwich the edge, but Mount Ida soon controlled the advantage with back-to-back goals by Thompson.
Abbriano made perfect use of a free position shot to tie the game at 3-all, and she and Whitaker netted the next two goals to wrap up the half. Chuba was able to find the back of the net with less than two minutes on the clock to bring the visitors within one goal at the midway mark.
Going into the second half, the first team to score could control the momentum. Senior Chelsea Martin scored less than 30 seconds into play, showing promise for the home team. However, the Mustangs had another plan and within the next two minutes, had closed the gap and tied the game at 6-6.
A play from Del Dotto to Fitzpatrick unfolded two minutes later and the winning goal was secured as the ball found the back of the net with an over-the-top shot by Grace. With the score at 7-6, the Cadets would keep the advantage the remainder of the game and clinched two more points before the Mustangs were able to answer back.
Holding their opponents to three more goals, Norwich put five more in the back of the visitor's net and secured a 14-9 victory and the top seed going into the postseason.
Sitting at No. 1, the women's lacrosse team will get a bye for the quarterfinal round of the tournament on Wednesday. They will host the winner of the No. 4 Simmons versus No. 5 Mount Ida battle. The semifinals will be held at Howard Field on Friday at 4 p.m.
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