Staten Island, NY – The Wagner women's lacrosse team out-shot Sacred Heart 43-28, with a 24-17 advantage in shots on goal, but the Pioneers held on late against the Seahawks for a 13-12 victory in Northeast Conference (NEC) action Saturday afternoon from Hameline Field.

Seniors Erin Kerstetter and Madeline Seims each recorded their 100th collegiate goals during the game; Seims finished with four goals and an assist, Kerstetter finished with two goals, two assists, five ground balls and seven draw controls.

Sophomore Megan Greco registered her fourth hat trick of the season, junior Kasey Dorney added a stat-sheet-stuffing two goals, three ground balls and four caused turnovers, and graduate student Megan Drum added a goal for Wagner

Lydia Werlau and Emma Kittredge both finished with hat tricks for Sacred Heart. Kirsten Barnes and Grace Reinold each added two goals, while Bella Beaton stopped 12 shots to earn the win in goal.

How it Happened:
Wagner led early 3-0, on the strength of two goals from Greco (both assisted by Kerstetter) and Kerstetter's milestone goal. Sacred Heart worked its way back to one-goal deficits on three occasions before tying the game at five just before the midway mark of the opening half.

The Seahawks went back in front on Seims' second goal of the day, but the Pioneers answered with two in a row, seizing their first lead of the day, 7-6. After Drum tied the game on a man-up opportunity, Sacred Heart reeled off three goals in a row, two coming from Kittredge, opening what would be its largest lead of the game, 10-7. Kerstetter added her second to close out first half scoring.

Seims and Dorney scored in the opening five minutes of the second half to square things at 10, but a defensive struggle emerged from there, the two teams went nearly nine minutes without a goal before Reinold and Werlau provided the lead, then some insurance, for Sacred Heart.

Wagner rallied to tie things at 12 on goals from Greco and Seims, but Barnes put Sacred Heart back up by one with just over five minutes to play. The Seahawks had chances down the stretch to tie, but Beaton made two saves in the final two minutes, including one on a free position attempt, as Sacred Heart held on for the win

Beyond The Numbers:

• Seims has 99 goals in her last 32 games, dating back to the start of the 2019 season
• Sacred Heart snapped a seven-game losing streak to Wagner, dating back to the 2014 season
• Saturday marked just the third loss for the Seahawks under head coach Michelle Tumolo when scoring 10 or more goals

Up Next:
Wagner heads to Maryland next Saturday for a 1:00 p.m. opening draw with conference-leading Mount St. Mary's.