West Chester University lacrosse (11-3, 8-2 PSAC) upped their win streak to three games this past week, earning victories over Shippensburg University and Seton Hill University.
In the Golden Rams’ 27-8 victory over Shippensburg, Dina Cifelli broke the PSAC record for career assists, as she dished out eight dimes en route to the win. Twenty-seven goals for WCU is a season best, and 12 of those points came via Cifelli, who scored four goals in addition to her eight assists.
Ali Donohue’s seven goals led the way for WCU, with multiple scores coming from Olivia Martin (four goals), Tatum Altman (three goals), Ashley Pyle (two goals), Emily Schulze (two goals) and Carleigh MacWilliams (two goals).
Kristen Vath, Tara Morrissey and Alex Wendig all added a solo score as well. Donohue’s seven goals marked a new career-high.
West Chester dominated this game in every capacity, including a stretch where they scored 15 unanswered goals.
Goalkeeper Nicole Martins logged 46 minutes of play and made five saves as she notched her 10th win of the year. Carly Shaup did not make a save in her 14 minutes of backup duty for Martins.
West Chester followed up their clinic against the Red Raiders with a strong 14-7 performance against Seton Hill University, which may now set the stage for a showdown with East Stroudsburg University for PSAC supremacy.
WCU’s win came on a damp afternoon, but the Golden Rams managed to prevail despite the conditions on what was Senior Day for the seven veteran members of the team.
Altman headed things for West Chester with four goals and her cohorts Pyle (three goals), Vath (two goals) and Morrissey (two goals) dipped in the multiple goal goo as well. Cifelli padded her PSAC assist record with four more helpers in this one.
The win also featured a season-high 13 saves from Martins, who bested the 12 saves Seton Hill’s Meghan Hollar made in the loss.
We at The Quad want to show our appreciation for the following seniors on the WCU lacrosse team: Ashley Pyle, Kelsey Gumbert, Kristen Vath, Dina Cifelli, Carleigh MacWilliams, Olivia Martin and Mckayl Novak. We are all appreciative of your contributions and the work you’ve put in during your respective tenures at WCU, and we wish you all the best in your future endeavors.
As for the remainder of the season, the Golden Rams have two games left, with their last home contest coming on Wednesday afternoon against East Stroudsburg, a game that could have huge conference and postseason implications.
After their home finale, WCU will venture to Edinboro University in what will be their final game of the 2017 regular season campaign. Be prepared to cheer on your Golden Rams as they prepare themselves for what they hope to be a vigorous playoff run, and one that results in some championship hardware.
Will “B.J.” Boyer is a third-year student majoring in communication studies with a minor in journalism. He can be reached at WB806695@wcupa.edu.