NORTHFIELD, Vt. - The Norwich University women's lacrosse team suffered a heartbreaking 15-14 overtime loss to Dean College to close out the 2023 regular season on Wednesday evening in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) bout on Sabine Field at Haynes Family Stadium.

Maddie Etherton (Johnstown, N.Y.) and Ellie Moriarty (Stowe, Vt.) led the Cadets with three goals apiece, while Athena Merck (West Yarmouth, Mass.) and Michaila Furchak (Nyack, N.Y.) each logged two goals.  Quinn Mustone (Medford, Mass.), Leocadia Clark (Stowe, Vt.), Neris Archambault (Pepperell, Mass.), and Julia Proto (Orange, Conn.) all added a goal each.

The game featured a series of runs from both sides, as the Bulldogs opened the contest with back-to-back goals before Norwich responded with three in a row.  Dean added two more prior to the end of the first quarter, but the Cadets reclaimed the advantage on Mustone and Proto scores.

Dean swiftly reclaimed the lead in a three-minute window behind three-straight goals, but Archambault and a man-up opportunity from Merck allowed Norwich to head into the halftime break tied, 7-7.  The Cadets wasted no time building on their momentum, outscoring the Cadets, 5-1, in the third quarter.

Furchak and Moriarty - with a Dean goal sandwiched in between - gave Norwich its largest lead of the contest early in the fourth quarter, courtesy of a pair of five-goal leads.  After Moriarty's final score, however, the Bulldogs would take control, as Maire Brown scored four of her game-high nine goals to send the game to overtime before Haley Gaunt found the back of the net to lead Dean to victory in sudden death.

Norwich and Dean tied in shots at 35-all, while the Cadets owned a 25-16 edge in ground balls.  Maeve Noble-Lowe (Freedom, Maine) registered 11 saves in the crease for the Cadets.

The Cadets will now hit the road for the GNAC Quarterfinals after locking down the seventh-seed in the conference tournament.  A trip to #2 Saint Joseph's College of Maine awaits on Friday, Apr. 28, at 4:30 p.m.  The Cadets and Monks met in the GNAC opener for both teams back on Mar. 11, where Saint Joseph's captured a 21-7 victory on Sabine Field.