No. 7 West Chester Rolls Past Lock Haven, 19-4; Takes Over Sole Possession Of First Place

LOCK HAVEN, Pa. – West Chester University's women's lacrosse cruised to a 19-4 victory over host Lock Haven at Charlotte Smith Field Saturday afternoon and moved into first place in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) standings as a result.
 
West Chester (13-2, 9-1 PSAC) ran its winning streak to seven straight with the win over arch-rival Lock Haven (3-12, 1-9). That triumph, coupled with East Stroudsburg's 7-6 loss at the hands of Mercyhurst, vaulted the Golden Rams into sole possession of first place in the PSAC Standings. West Chester has two games remaining on its league schedule (Millersville, IUP) while ESU has just one remaining (Bloomsburg).
 
Sr., Maggie Stella (Doylestown, Pa./Central Bucks East) scored five goals and added three assists for an eight-point game while also scooping up six draw controls on the afternoon. Stella had a hat trick 13 minutes into the game, fueling a seven-goal run by the visitors to open up the game.
 
Lock Haven responded with a pair of goals to draw within five (7-2). Alex Wendig (West Chester, Pa./Bishop Shanahan) got one of those back with five minutes left in the half to send the Golden Rams into the locker room with an 8-2 lead.
 
Stella opened the second half with a goal and an assist as West Chester built a 10-2 advantage early on. Stella chipped in another assist the rest of the way while Tara Morrissey (Downingtown, Pa./Bishop Shanahan) scored a pair of goals to highlight the Golden Rams' 11-goal second half effort that put the game away.
 
West Chester harassed Lock Haven into 31 turnovers in all, including 11 in the clearing game, and limited Lock Haven to just 10 shots in the game. The Golden Rams held a 17-8 advantage on draws and a 25-14 advantage in ground balls.
 
Tatum Altman (North Brunswick, N.J./North Brunswick) finished with a pair of goals and a pair of assists while Morrissey posted three points. Lindsey Monigle (Rehoboth Beach, Del./Cape Henlopen) registered a pair of goals, along with Ryan McKinney (Downingtown, Pa./Downingtown West) and Sami Barnett (Glenolden, Pa./Interboro).
 
West Chester hosts Millersville on Wednesday at 4 p.m. in the final regular-season home game of 2019. A win over Millersville would clinch a first-round bye in the PSAC Tournament while wins in each of its remaining two games, or an East Stroudsburg loss to Bloomsburg, would clinch the team's second straight regular-season PSAC title.
 
The PSAC Tournament semifinals will take place on Friday, May 3 with the championship game set for Sunday, May 5.