Cortland Standard .net

Behind a big performance from senior midfielder Emma Hayes-Hurley, the SUNY Cortland women’s lacrosse team had little trouble recovering from its first loss of the season.
Hayes-Hurley scored a career-high six goals to become the 25th player in the history of the program to reach 100 career goals as the Red Dragons rolled past visiting Nazareth College 20-5 on a chilly Tuesday at the Stadium Complex.
Hayes-Hurley wasn’t the only Red Dragons to have a memorable afternoon, as sophomore attack Kristen Ohberg collected four assists to become the 40th player ever at Cortland to reach 100 career points as well.
Cortland scored the opening seven goals and cruised from there to improve to 4-1 overall, bouncing back from last Sunday’s 13-11 loss at Salisbury. The Red Dragons are currently ranked sixth nationally in Division III.
Nazareth — coached by Cortland High graduate Traci (Hay) Lian — fell to 5-2 with the loss.
While Hayes-Hurley and Ohberg reached career milestones, junior Ashley Gentile chipped in with four goals as Cortland held a lopsided 36-18 shot advantage. Junior Tara Monaghan tallied three times and picked up an assist, and junior Nicole Bello and freshman Hannah Elmer each contributed two goals and one assist.
Senior Marilyn Farrell matched Ohberg’s game-high four assists and chipped in with a goal, and junior Elise Bennett and sophomore Kaitlin Antelmi also netted goals.
For the Golden Flyers, senior Brooke Sullivan and sophomore Kate Rothrock notched two goals apiece.
That early 7-0 Cortland spurt came over the opening 8:39. Elmer started the scoring at 28:02, and Ohberg assisted on Hayes-Hurley’s first goal at 27:43 to give them each their milestone point.
The next five Cortland goals came from five different players as Elmer and Hayes-Hurley each notched her second. Nazareth’s Gabbie Charles stopped the run with her first goal of the season at 19:48, but Gentile wrapped goals around a Bello score and Cortland led 10-1 at 17:31.The Red Dragons closed the half by outscoring the Golden Flyers, 4-2, over the final 15:55 to build a 14-3 lead.
Monaghan and Gentile opened the second-half scoring before Sullivan and Rothrock each netted her second of the game for Nazareth, and the Red Dragons led 16-5 with 12:10 on the clock.
Cortland closed the game with the final four goals, two from Hayes-Hurley and one each from Bello and Monaghan, all inside the five-minute mark for the final winning margin.
Sophomore goalie Jaclyn Beshlian earned her first career start for the Red Dragons, making seven saves in 48:10. Junior Liz Ingalls did not face a shot on cage in the final 11:50.
Gentile registered six draw controls, four caused turnovers and four ground balls. Monaghan also won six draw controls, while Hayes-Hurley secured five draws and collected three ground balls.
After Cortland visits Ithaca College Thursday in a 4 p.m. non-league affair, the defending champion Red Dragons begin SUNY Athletic Conference play hosting Fredonia Saturday in a 12:30 p.m. start. That’s the first game in a Stadium Complex lacrosse twin bill, as Cortland men host Montclair State in a clash of nationally-ranked squads at 3:30 p.m. that same afternoon.
Fredonia women are 5-1 on the season, having knocked off nationally-ranked St. John Fisher 17-10 in a non-conference clash yesterday.