BOX SCORE WEST HAVEN, Conn. - The nationally ranked No. 14 University of New Haven women's lacrosse team defeated No. 13 Bentley University 18-14 Wednesday afternoon in the First Round of the Northeast-10 Conference Women's Lacrosse Championship. With the win, the Chargers advance to the semifinals and will take on host No. 4 Le Moyne College Saturday morning at 11 a.m. in Syracuse, N.Y.

The Chargers held on to a three point lead at the beginning of the first half, but the Falcons hung around. Bentley worked its way back into the game and evened the score at 11-11 with over 20 minutes left in the second half. New Haven's next 3-0 run gave the Chargers the lead for good and they improved to 12-6 on the season. Bentley dropped to 11-7 and concluded its season.

The postseason win is the first for the Chargers since 2009 when they hosted the NE-10 tournament in West Haven. New Haven's 12 wins this season are fourth-best in program history and one away from tying the 13 wins from last season.

In the first seven minutes, New Haven and Bentley exchanged points with Kristina Curry (East Meadow, N.Y./East Meadow) evening the scored at 2-2 at the 23:28 mark. The Chargers, propelled by three goals from freshman Courtney Ackland (Perth, Western Australia/Churchlands), jumped out to a 6-2 lead just eight minutes later. Ackland scored one unassisted goal and two with assists from Maya Szymanski (Framingham, Mass./Framingham) and Kathryn Campbell (Mansfield, Mass./Mansfield). In the final 15 minutes of the first half, the Falcons outscored New Haven 4-3 and brought the halftime scored within three, 9-6.

Bentley opened the second half with two straight to bring the score back within one point. Curry and Nicole McKee (Wantagh, N.Y./MacArthur) brought the three-point cushion back, but the lead wouldn't last long. During the next six minutes, Bentley scored three quick goals and evened the score at 11-11 with 20:16 remaining. Szymanski sparked a 3-0 New Haven run with 16:43 left as the Chargers regained the lead. Bentley never gave up, bring the Chargers' lead back within two points on two occasions. With 4:05 left, Campbell scored her fourth goal of the game and put UNH ahead by four, 17-13. Each team scored in the final three minutes and brought the final score to 18-14 in favor of the Chargers.

One of the deciding factors in Wednesday's game included a 20-14 advantage in draw controls for the Chargers. Sophomore Brittany Ast (Glenwood, N.J./Vernon Township) led UNH with eight draw controls, while McKee and Szymanski each chipped in with three. New Haven successfully completed 18-of-20 clear attempts and held a 17-12 advantage in ground balls.

Campbell led New Haven with four goals and two assists for six points. The Mansfield, Mass. native also grabbed four ground balls and two draw controls in the win. Ackland and Curry also scored four goals for UNH. Natalie Lieberman (Manorville, N.Y./Eastport South Manor) contributed four goals and one assists, while Marissa Fisher (Jackson, N.J./Jackson Memorial) also tallied multiple scores. 

In goal, freshman Marissa McDermott (Longmeadow, Mass./Wilbraham & Monson Academy) earned her 10th win of the season with 10 saves and 14 goals against.

Stay posted to www.NewHavenChargers.com for complete coverage of the women's lacrosse team's run for the 2013 NE-10 Championship. The other semifinal will feature the winner of (3) Stonehill against (2) Adelphi on Saturday afternoon at Le Moyne. The winner of Saturday's semifinal games will advance to the Championship on Sunday, May 5 at 1 p.m. in Syracuse (*Note - championship game time is subject to change).