WEST HAVEN, Conn. - The nationally-ranked No. 6 University of New Haven women's lacrosse team scored the only second goals of the second half to defeat visiting Saint Michael's 12-3 Sunday afternoon at Kayo Field. Sophomore Caitlin O'Brien (Branford, Conn./Branford) led the team with three goals, while Corinne Fisher (Jackson, N.J./Jackson Memorial) added two goals and an assist.

The Chargers improve to 7-1 overall and 4-1 in the Northeast-10 Conference, while the Purple Knights drop to 1-5 overall and 1-4 in conference play.

Joining O'Brien and Fisher with multiple points in the win were Courtney Ackland (Perth, Western Australia/Churchlands), Nicole Belanger (Kinnelon, N.J./Kinnelon) and Kathryn Campbell (Mansfield, Mass./Mansfield). Each recorded two goals in the victory. Campbell led the team with nine ground balls, while defender Brittany Ast (Glenwood, N.J./Vernon Township) added five. Fisher anchored the team with six draw controls as well. Marissa McDermott (Longmeadow, Mass./Wilbraham & Monson Academy) earned her fourth victory in goal with four saves in the win.

Melissa Jaskiewicz led the Purple Knights with two goals. Paige MacKinnon scored the third goal, while Maggie Dougherty and Courtney Piper each tallied an assist.

New Haven led 29-13 in shots and 27-16 in ground balls. Saint Michael's held a 9-8 advantage in draw controls. The Chargers were a perfect 18-of-18 on clear attempts.

The two teams exchanged goals in the first six minutes, with O'Brien beginning scoring with her 17th of the season in unassisted fashion. Jaskiewicz evened the score at the 24:08 mark and then put the Purple Knights ahead 2-1 with 21:59 left on the clock in the first half. O'Brien then began a 4-0 New Haven run during a 17 minute stretch to put the Chargers ahead 5-2 with 3:38 remaining in the period. With 51 seconds remaining, the Purple Knights added one more to bring the halftime score to 5-3 in favor of the Blue and Gold.

The second half belonged to the Chargers as Campbell began scoring at the 26:40 mark and five others added six throughout the period. With a majority of possession controlled by the UNH attack, Saint Michael's saw 15 shot attempts in the second half. Belanger scored back-to-back at the 21:23 and the 14:04 marks to push the lead to 8-3. Ackland, Ashley Travis (LaFayette, N.Y./LaFayette ), O'Brien and Fisher then scored the final four goals of the game in a five minute span to seal the nine-point victory.

New Haven will return to action on Tuesday, March 31 when it travels to Pace in another NE-10 matchup. Game time is set for 3:30 p.m. Later in the week, the Chargers will travel to Stonehill.