Williamsburg, KY – Facing their fourth straight top-ten opponent, the University of the Cumberlands women's lacrosse team coupled a potent offense with a tenacious defense as the Patriots knocked off third-ranked Keiser 16-4 Friday night at the UC Lacrosse/Soccer Complex. With the win, UC improves to 12-3 and 3-1 in conference play, while the Seahawks drop to 11-3 and 3-1 against the MSC.

Cumberlands took control of the game right from the start as Elizabeth Fladung won the opening draw control and on the Patriots possession Emily Heim found Jaclyn Berry for a goal to give UC a 1-0 lead 36 second into the game.  The Patriots looked to add to their lead but Jessica Covell made four straight stops to keep the score 1-0.  A couple minutes later Bella Ricchiazzi picked off a Seahawks pass, raced up field, and fired home a goal to push the lead to 2-0.  The two teams traded goals, before Berry notched three of the next four goals to give the Patriots a 7-1 lead with 5:19 remaining.  After Keiser cut the lead to 7-2, Briana Kucis scooped the ground ball off a Seahawk turnover, and on the ensuing transition Trinity Brown found Shea West for the goal to give the Patriots an 8-2 lead at halftime.

UC continued to showcased their offensive efficiency tallying five unanswered goals to start the second half.  Ricchiazzi got the scoring started with a well-placed shot just inside the near post 23 seconds into the half. Heim and Berry connected on three of the next four goals, with Berry netted the fourth goal off an assist from Ricchiazzi to give Cumberlands a 13-2 advantage.  The two teams traded goals before Brown scooped a ground ball, raced up field and connected with the back of the cage for a goal to extend the lead to 15-3.  Each team added a goal in the final five minutes for the 16-4 final.

Cumberlands outshot Keiser 40-13 in the game, while scooping 31 ground balls, and converted 22 of their 26 clears.

Berry led the way for the Patriots with eight goals and an assists, while Heim tallied a pair of goals, six assists, seven draw controls, five ground balls, and four caused turnovers. Ricchiazzi chipped in six points, while West and Brown finished with two points apiece.

UC's backline of Brown, Fladung, Kucis, and Kelly Webb combined to hold the Seahawks to their fewest goals since April 21, 2017.  The quartet also recorded five caused turnovers and 15 ground balls, including seven from Brown, which is a new career-high.  Emily Crump made five saves in the contest to earn her tenth win of the season.  

The Patriots return to the field Sunday, April 14, when they host Ave Maria their regular season finale at 1 p.m. Prior to the game UC will honor their six seniors. Live video available here, while live stats are available here.

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