SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (March 27, 2024) – The Western New England women's lacrosse team dropped their conference opener on Wednesday evening to the Gulls of Endicott College by a final score of 18-6. Ally Ferraro led the Golden Bears with three goals in the loss.

Records:

• Western New England: 0-7, 0-1 CCC
• Endicott College: 4-5, 1-0 CCC

How it Happened:

The Golden Bears got off to a promising start in the early goings of the first quarter, scoring the first goal of the game after Emmy Burns was able to drive to the net and fire home the first goal of the afternoon's contest, giving the Golden Bears a 1-0 lead. The Gulls would take exception to the goal from Burns and score six straight goals to take a quick 6-1 lead. Kiana Napolitano would lead Endicott with two goals and an assist in that span, putting Endicott ahead by five. Emmy Burns would again find the back of the net on an unassisted tally, which gave WNE their second goal of the game. Endicott would take a six-goal lead after one quarter of play, finding the back of the net two more times following the second goal of the night from Burns, with Napolitano and Annabelle Gray helping the Gulls to an 8-2 lead. The Gulls took 14 shots in the first frame to Western New England's five.

The second quarter would belong to Endicott, who buried seven goals into the back of the net while the Gulls defense held Western New England to just one total shot in the second 15 minutes of play. Emerson Clark scored twice for Endicott in the frame, while Kiana Napolitano continued her offensive ways for the visitors, leading Endicott to a 15-2 halftime lead. The Gulls outshot Western New England 11-1 in the frame, while the Golden Bears came away with eight turnovers in the period. Western New England also went 0/4 on clear attempts in the second half, coming away with just two ground balls.

After the Gulls opened the scoring in the third, Western New England would see Ally Ferraro get on the board twice in quick succession, scoring back-to-back goals for the Golden Bears in a one-minute and 32-second span, grabbing WNE's third and fourth goals of the game. Western New England held Endicott to just two goals in the frame, seeing WNE outshoot the Gulls 6-3.

In the fourth quarter, Western New England would outscore Endicott 2-1, though it would be too late as Endicott would come away with the victory. In the quarter, Ally Ferraro and Mia Celentano would come away with goals for Western New England. The Golden Bears would go 4/6 on clear attempts in the quarter and would outshoot Endicott 6-5. Endicott's first-half offense would be too much for the Golden Bears to handle, as Western New England would fall on an 18-6 count.

Inside the Lines:

• Endicott outshot the Golden Bears 33-18, including 25-6 in the first half. Western New England goalkeeping made ten total saves, four coming from Faith Graveline and six from Riley Franzo.
• Ally Ferraro scored three goals for the Golden Bears in the loss, taking eight shots, putting seven on goal, coming away with two ground balls and one caused turnovers.
• Emmy Burns put together two goals on two shots, scooping two ground balls and causing two turnovers.
• Endicott was led by Kiana Napolitano, who scored four goals and picked up six assists, good for ten total points, a game high.
• Endicott recorded 18 goals and 15 assists in the game while scooping 21 ground balls.
• The Gulls have defeated the Golden Bears ten times in a row.

Up Next on the Schedule:

• WNE will look to grab their first win of the season on Saturday, March 30 at 12:00 pm as they take on winless Wentworth Institute of Technology in CCC play.