THE BASICS:
- Score: No. 15 Merrimack 19, No. 25 Assumption 13
- Records: Merrimack (13-4, 10-3 NE10), Assumption (9-7, 6-7 NE10)
- Location: North Andover, Mass. (Merrimack Stadium)
- The Lead: No. 25 Assumption kept it close throughout the contest and trailed No. 15 Merrimack by just three goals with 11 minutes left in regulation, however, the Warriors scored the final three goals of the contest to pull away for a 19-13 victory on Saturday afternoon in the team's regular season finale.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Merrimack scored three times in the opening five minutes to grab the early advantage. Freshman Allison Foley (Walpole, Mass. / Walpole) put the Hounds on the board at 22:28 and Kailyn Hart (Cohoes, N.Y. / Shaker) followed with a goal off a feed from Alexis Pastore (Baldwinsville, N.Y. / Charles W. Baker) just one a minute later. Two more goals by the Warriors pushed their lead to 5-2 with 20 minutes left.
- Over the next six minutes, Amanda Burns (Billerica, Mass. / Billerica Memorial), Foley and Sarah Reilly (Fairfield, Conn. / Fairfield-Warde) all tallied goals to bring Assumption even, 5-5. Two Merrimack goals in a one-minute span made it 7-5, before a Hound goal cut it to one with 9:35 left in the period. However, the Warriors ended the half on a 4-1 run for an 11-7 lead at the break.
- Burns scored just 42 seconds into the second, but the Warriors tacked on three more goals over the next nine minutes for a 14-8 lead. Callie Dwyer (Merrimack, N.H. / Merrimack) and Reilly scored on consecutive free position goals to cut it to 14-10 at 16:57.
- The Hounds outscored Merrimack 3-2 over the next five minutes, with Caitlin Graves (Ashland, Mass. / Ashland) scoring twice to make it just 16-13 with 11:32 left. However, the Warriors held Assumption scoreless the rest of the way and scored three more times for the 19-13 final.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
- Assumption was outshot only 33-31 in the contest and picked up more ground balls (23-19). The Warriors had more draw controls (18-16) and both teams had 13 caused turnovers.
- Burns led the offense with four goals, while Reilly added two goals and two assists. Foley & Graves each scored twice. Freshman Marran Oakman (Kennebunk, Maine / Kennebunk) had eight draw controls while classmate Grace McDermott (Franklin, Mass. / Franklin) added two ground balls and two caused turnovers.
- Kyra Goucher (Derry, N.H. / Pinkerton Academy) took the loss in net, making four saves in 60 minutes of action. She did add seven ground balls and three caused turnovers. Lauren Trepaney earned the win with 12 saves and 13 goals allowed.
UP NEXT:
- The Hounds return to action on Wednesday when they square off against top seed Adelphi at 4 pm in the NE10 Quarterfinals.
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