Women's Lacrosse Dominates Dean On Chilly Tuesday Night, 14-2

WEST HARTFORD, Conn. – The University of Saint Joseph (USJ) women's lacrosse team caught fire on an otherwise frigid Tuesday night, handling the Bulldogs of Dean College, 14-2, in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) contest on the USJ Lacrosse Field.

GAME INFORMATION
Score: Dean 2, Saint Joseph 14
Records: Dean 2-6 (2-4 GNAC), USJ 4-6 (2-4 GNAC)
Location: USJ Lacrosse Field | West Hartford, Conn.

The game was once again dominated by the dynamic duo of senior midfielder Jenna Banta (Montville, Conn.), and junior attack Makenzie Dinger (Hingham, Mass.), two of the top three scorers in the GNAC and the highest scoring duo in the conference. Banta netted a game-high six goals, while Dinger added five, totaling 11 of the team's 14 scores for the evening. Junior attack Cayleen Defaranos (Northford, Conn.) was on point as well, dishing out a game-high three assists to go with one goal to total four points in the triumph. Defaranos is currently second in the conference in assists this season with 17. Dinger and Banta meanwhile have accounted for a combined 88 goals on the year, which is more than nine teams in the GNAC have in total goals this season. A pair of Bulldogs scored one goal each for Dean.

The Blue Jays came out in a hurry scoring seven times in the first period to take a commanding lead that they would never relinquish. Banta at one point scored three-straight times for the hosts. Dean slowed down Saint Joseph slightly in the second period, but Banta kept the Blue Jays on track scoring three of four goals in the second stanza. It was 11-0 USJ at the break. Dinger scored the final three for USJ while Dean got on the board with two scores in the fourth quarter, but it was too little too late for the visitors.

COACH QUOTE [Karen Nell]
"I think our defense has been playing amazing, and Nina Lestrud has been a big part of that, keeping us at a point where our attack just has to get their job done. We did great on the draws today, which is something we have been struggling with. Between the draws and our defense, it just gave our offense a lot of opportunities."

NUMBER TO KNOW

46 – Dinger now has 46 goals on the season. She needs six more to break the USJ single season record of 51, set by Rose St. Hilaire in 2016. Dinger has seven regular-season games left to do so.

GOALIE BREAKDOWN

DEAN – Junior goalie Jada Fields (Acushnet, Mass.) was dealt the loss (2-5), allowing 14 goals on 23 shots in a full 60 minutes of time between the pipes.

USJ – Senior goalkeeper and captain Nina Lestrud (Torrington, Conn.) moved to 4-6 on the season with a nine-save, 45-minute shutout for the hosts. Lestrud's 87 saves are second-best in the GNAC. Senior stopper Silvana Barcomb (Middletown, Conn.) played the last 15 minutes for USJ.

UP NEXT
The Blue Jays head back on the road for a GNAC contest against the Cadets of Norwich University on Saturday, April 2 at 2:00 p.m. The Blue Jays are seeking their first win over the Cadets in over a decade.

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