Sperl and Ianniello team up to lift Sage past Elms, 14-8
| Final | 1 | 2 | T |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
9 | 5 | 14 |
|
|
6 | 2 | 8 |
Chicopee, MA-- The Sage Colleges' women's lacrosse team travelled to Massachusetts for a non-conference match-up with the Blazers of Elms College. Paced by the play of senior attackers Torri Sperl (Saugerties, NY/Saugerties) and Martine Ianniello (Havre de Grace, MD/Havre de Grace) the Gators earned the 14-8 road win for their first victory of the year. With the win, Sage is now 1-2 overall, while Elms drops to 0-3.
Sage held a 9-6 lead at the half and by game's end, Sperl has a career-best seven points on five goals and two assists. She leads the team in scoring this year with 10 points and now has 50 career points on 46 goals and four assists. Ianniello added four goals and an assist to give her five points and up her season total to include 6 points on five goals and an assist. She is now ninth in career scoring with 34 goals and also ninth in points, (34g, 5a), while Sperl jumped to fifth after Tuesday night's efforts after starting the day in seventh in career scoring.
Sophomore midfielder Brittany Gage (Pine Bush, NY/Pine Bush) added two goals with an assist, while sophomore attacker Anne Risler (Albany, NY/Academy of the Holy Names) added two goals. Sage had five different players score as rookie Alex Franco (Ballston Spa, NY/Ballston Spa) added a goal as well. Senior midfielder Ellen Abbott (Rensselaer, NY/Columbia) added six draw controls with a ground ball pickup, while senior defender Nikki Pedone (Ballston Lake, NY/Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake) added three ground balls with two caused turnovers to help Sage's defensive unit in the action.
Junior Jenna Cislak (Poughkeepsie, NY/Arlington) came up with the complete game win after she racked up 16 saves with eight goals allowed in the net.
The Gators are in action again on March 24 hosting Houghton College in the team's first Empire 8 match-up with a 1 p.m. start at ACP's Athletic Field.
Team Stats
Russell Sage College
Elms
| Game Statistics | Russell Sage College | Elms |
|---|---|---|
| Shots | 27 | 27 |
| Ground Balls | 11 | 15 |
| Saves | 16 | 3 |
| Clears | 14-15 | 15-15 |
| Turnovers | 23 | 23 |
| Draw Controls | 16 | 8 |
| Free Position Shots | 0-0 | 1-5 |
