Chester, Pa. – Sophomore attacker Clare Lyne (Concord, Mass.) scored three goals to lead the Trinity College Bantams into their fourth consecutive NCAA Division III Women's Lacrosse Finals with an 11-6 semifinal victory over the Franklin and Marshall College Diplomats at PPL Park this afternoon.  The Bantams tied school records for wins in a season and consecutive wins in a season with their 21st triumph in a row to improve to 21-1, and will face the SUNY Cortland Red Dragons in the NCAA Finals tomorrow at 4:30 p.m. at PPL Park.  Trinity has ended Cortland's NCAA runs the last three years with NCAA Semifinal wins including an 8-7 victory over the then-undefeated Red Dragons last spring.  Trinity won the 2012 NCAA title, 8-7, over Salisbury and lost to Salisbury in the 2013 and 2014 NCAA Finals.

"We got over the hump after adjusting to the grass surface and the pressure that Franklin and Marshall was putting on us defensively," said Trinity Head Coach Katy Dissinger (1st Season).  "We were on defense for the majority of the second half and so we stressed the importance of winning draws and having longer possessions on offense in the second half."

Trinity took a 2-0 lead early on a pair of free-position shots by senior tri-captain midfielder Caroline Hayes (Greenland, N.H.) and junior M/A Abby McQuillan (Medfield, Mass.), respectively. Franklin and Marshall won the opening draw but got off just one shot against the Trinity defense while holding the ball for six minutes before turning it over.  Hayes scores first at 22:50, shooting into to upper right corner of the net past Diplomat freshman goalie Danielle Harrington.  McQuillan scored moments later from the left side, but Franklin and Marshall rookie Paige Moriarty sent a sidearm shot into the upper left of Trinity's cage to halve the Bantam advantage with 21:21 on the clock.

Moriarty's tally ignited a 4-0 run for the Diplomats that included a pair of scores by sophomore attacker Gabby Frank.  Bantam first-year midfielder Allie Barrett (Concord, Mass.) deked her defender on the right side to break a 15:10 scoring drought for the Bantams at the 6:47 mark, and fellow rookie Zoe Ferguson (Ridgewood, N.J.) made a pair of saves on close shots by the Diplomats to keep the score at 4-3 into the final minute before the break.  With Franklin and Marshall down a player due to a yellow card, Hayes fed Trinity first-year Abby McInerney (Cape Elizabeth, Maine) for the game-tying goal with just 1.7 seconds on the clock to give Trinity momentum heading into halftime. 

Trinity scored the first seven goals of the second half to take control of the contest, as junior midfielder Martha Griffin (Exeter, N.H.) started things with a free-position shot 5:15 after the break, and Lyne scored all of her goals in a six-minute span to account for three of the next five tallies.  McInerney completed the 9-0 spurt from senior tri-captain Renee Olsen (Ridgewood, N.J.), before Franklin and Marshall netted a pair of goals in the last 3:30 to account for the 11-6 final score.

Trinity outshot the Diplomats, 18-14, and scored on three of its six free-position shots.  The Bantams also won the ground ball battle with a 13-to-8 edge and forced eight of Franklin and Marshall's 13 turnovers.  The Diplomats committed 31 fouls to just 11 for the Bantams.  McInerney and McQuillan joined Lyne as multiple-goal scorers for the Bantams, while Hayes collected a goal, an assist, and a game-high five draw controls.  Sophomore Lara Guida (Mendham, N.J.) scooped a team-high three ground balls, while senior defender Lindsay Mullaney (Boston, Mass.) caused four turnovers, and Ferguson and junior goalie Emily Mooney (New York, N.Y,) split the game and combined on four saves.  Frank and Brittney Jorgenson scored twice each for for the Diplomats, while Moriarty finished with a goal and two assists, and Harrington made six saves.

"In the second half, we took ownership of the field and stopped worrying about slipping or making mistakes," said Hayes.  "Tomorrow will be my Super Bowl, my last collegiate game, and we could not be more excited."

Hartford Courant story

Full post-game quotes