SPRINGFIELD, Massachusetts The American International College women's lacrosse team caused 21 turnovers in a great defensive effort as the Yellow Jackets toppled The College of Saint Rose, 16-9, in a Northeast-10 Conference matchup on Wednesday, March 17.

FAST FACTS:
Final Score: AIC 16, Saint Rose 9
Records: AIC improves to 1-1 overall and 1-1 in the NE10, while Saint Rose falls to 0-1 and 0-1 in the NE10.
Location: Ronald J. Abdow Field, Springfield, Massachusetts

KEY STATS:
AIC:
Molly Leavitt: Four goals, one assist
Liz Day: Three goals, one assist
Devin Coulter: Three goals, one assist, three ground balls
Anevay Rice: Two goals, two assists
Kaitlyn Morris: Two goals, one assist, four draw controls
Krista Iwanicki: One goal, two assists, five draw controls
Cassie Hemmerdinger: One assist, five caused turnovers, seven ground balls
Madi Bis: Four caused turnovers, three ground balls
Chelsea Davis: Win (1-1), nine saves; three caused turnovers, seven ground balls

Saint Rose:
Deanna Ciliento: Three goals, five draw controls
Daria Bock: Three goals, three draw controls
Eileen Rattigan: One assist, four draw controls
Dorothy Gaffney: Loss (0-1), nine saves; two caused turnovers, seven ground balls

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• The Golden Knights struck first on a tally by Daria Bock, and the teams traded goals throughout the first fifteen minutes of the game; Bock's goal at 12:59 made her the first player to score a second time in the contest, while junior Molly Leavitt scored AIC's first of the game and set up the team's second. Sophomore Kaitlyn Morris tied the score 4-4 at 14:01.
• Senior Devin Coulter gave AIC its first lead at 15:35 on a feed from rookie Anevay Rice, returning the favor after Coulter set up the freshman's first career tally earlier in the game. That sparked a run for the Yellow Jackets, who saw goals from Morris, sophomores Liz Day and Elly MacDonald, and a pair by Leavitt over the next 13:00 to take a 10-4 lead. A late goal by the Golden Knights set the score to 10-5 at halftime.
• Neither team could muster much offense early in the second half as the defense of AIC, particularly freshman Cassie Hemmerdinger and junior Madi Bis, along with graduate goalkeeper Chelsea Davis, stifled Saint Rose. The Golden Knights did finally break through with goals by Ciliento and Bock 43 seconds apart, only to have Coulter respond 55 seconds later, extending AIC's lead to 11-7 with 21:53 to play.
• Hemmerdinger's smarts were on full display on AIC's next goal as she forced a turnover and then ran length of the field with it before passing to Coulter for an easy goal at 14:54; one minute later, Leavitt hit the net with a shot.
• Ciliento scored her second of the game with 10:43 to play, but Day completed her hat trick just 34 seconds later. Ciliento would net her third as well at 23:01, but the remaining goals were scored by Rice and graduate Krista Iwanicki as the Yellow Jackets closed out the 16-9 victory.

DISAPPEARING BALL TRICK:

• Hemmerdinger's five caused turnovers and seven ground balls were part of an all-out defensive effort from AIC; six players caused multiple turnovers for the Yellow Jackets, with Bis forcing four and Davis three, and Coulter, Iwanicki, and sophomore Lauren Smithers each with a pair.
• Iwanicki had a solid night all around with three points, the pair of caused turnovers, and a game-best five draw controls.
• AIC's 21 caused turnovers are the most in a game since the Yellow Jackets hit the total against Queens on March 8, 2018; the last time AIC had more was March 16, 2011, when the Yellow Jackets stole 23 from Post University.

THREE IS TWO:

• Davis jumped two spots to second all-time in ground balls with 138, passing both Stefanie Dufresne '17 and Alexis Torosian '17 in the process.
• Only Gina Gallo '11, with 169, has more in program history.

NEXT UP:

• AIC will face NE10 Northeast Division foe No. 18 Saint Anselm College at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, March 20 in Manchester, New Hampshire.