OSWEGO, N.Y. — The Oswego State women’s lacrosse team was defeated in their home-opener Saturday, falling to Utica in a 11-10 overtime contest. Despite a valiant comeback, the Pioneers capitalized on a controversial ricochet goal to drop the Lakers to 0-3.

Both teams traded early goals to begin the opening quarter. Julia Quirk put the Lakers up 1-0 just 44 seconds into the game, but that lead didn’t last long. 25 seconds later, the Pioneers answered with their first goal which tied the game at one apiece. After some back-and-forth play, Utica netted four goals within four minutes to give them a 5-1 lead. Before the frame ended, Sela Wiley kept her hot streak going and scored her first goal of the game. To begin the second quarter, Oswego scored back-to-back goals courtesy of Quirk and Madison Davis. Though, to close out the quarter, Utica added three more goals to take a 8-4 lead going into halftime.

Three minutes into the second half, Quirk put in her third goal of the contest which brought the deficit to three. Seven minutes later, Shae McConnell netted another goal on a free position shot. Shortly after on a woman-down possession, Utica scored again to make it 9-6. With two minutes remaining in the stanza, McConnell added another free position goal to bring the deficit to two heading into final period. Needing a strong finish to comeback in the game, the Lakers provided in the clutch. The first 13 minutes of the quarter saw Madison Davis tally her second goal of the afternoon and Shae McConnell put in another two goals. However, with 1:52 remaining in regulations, the Pioneers cashed in on a free position goal to tie the game 10-10. Neither team would score from there on out, which brought the game to overtime. The Lakers won the initial draw control behind Julia Quirk, but their shot went wide and Utica gained possession. With a player off due to penalty, the Pioneers hit the game-winner off a clear attempt. Although the shot would be discussed at volume by the officials due to Utica having seven players in the offensive zone, the away team was awarded the goal, ending the game.

Oswego saw six players total points in the contest including McConnell (6), Quirk (3), Davis (2), Wiley (2), Logan Castiglione (1), and Madison Green (1). With this loss, Oswego State drops to 0-3 to start the season despite a fierce offensive prowess. With their first win of the season still ahead of them, the Lakers will have the opportunity to get it as they take on St. Lawrence on Tuesday, March 8. Face-off is set for 4:00 p.m. at Canton.

Image Provided By Oswego State Athletics Department