SOUTH HADLEY, Mass. - First year attack Abby Baldwin recorded a game-high six goals to lift Mount Holyoke College past Wellesley College, 15-12 in New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) action on Saturday afternoon. The Lyons improve to 7-5 overall and 2-2 in conference play, earning their first victory over Wellesley since the 2014 season. The Blue are now 5-8 and 1-4 in NEWMAC action.
Baldwin (Florence, Mass./Northampton) now has 52 goals and 10 assists for 62 points over 12 games in her rookie campaign - moving her to 11th all-time in program history for goals in a season and 17th in all-time points in a season. She currently ranks third in the conference in both goals and points for the 2019 season.
The Lyons held a 10-4 lead through the opening half as a hat trick from Baldwin, along with a pair of tallies from junior midfielder and captain Julianna Rankin (Annapolis, Md./Annapolis). The opening frame was centered with a number of free position scores as the Lyons notched four straight on the free position, while Wellesley added one.
Senior midfielder and captain Ellie Chalphin (Philadelphia, Pa./Germantown Friends School) cut down an early deficit for the visiting Blue, making it 3-2 in favor of the home team following a great feed from classmate and fellow middie/captain Olivia Strobl (Stafford, Va./Colonial Forge). Despite the momentum, MHC was able to rebound with three straight shots on the free position.
Wellesley senior attack and captain Dacia Persky (Las Vegas, Nev./Bishop Gorman) scored to close the gap to 7-4, but the Lyons closed out the frame with three straight.
The second half opened with a battle between Persky and Baldwin as the pair traded goals twice until 22:34 as Persky scored on the free position to cut Wellesley deficit to 12-7. Rankin and Lyons sophomore midfielder Meryl Phair (Stockbridge, Mass./Monument Mountain Regional) each scored to make it 14-7 with 17:30 on the clock, but the Blue battled back once more.
First year attack Izzy Burdick (Scarborough, Maine/Waynflete) kicked off a 4-0 run for the visitors at 13:32 - also adding the game's final tally at 2:01. Persky, who ranks just above Baldwin in both points and goals for second in the conference, tacked on her fifth goal of the game at 8:19, but the Lyons rookie countered on the free position for her sixth of the contest to make it a 15-11 edge for MHC.
Mount Holyoke saw Baldwin add 14 shots (8 on goal) with a ground ball and four draw controls. Rankin boasted a game-best seven draw controls in addition to her three goals, while junior defender Kathryn Violette (Yokosuka City, Japan/Yokohama International School) had a game-high four ground balls with a caused turnover. In goal, Lyons junior Mia Wysocki (Longmeadow, Mass./Longmeadow) earned the victory with eight saves.
For Wellesley, Persky paced the effort with five goals and an assist to go along with eight shots (6 on goal), a ground ball and three draw controls. Sophomore midfielder Kat Gallison (Portsmouth, R.I./Bishop Stang) added three ground balls, five draw controls and a game-best three caused turnovers, while three others recorded two goals each. In the cage, rookie Lorna Li (Taunton, Mass./Taunton) shouldered the loss with nine saves.
Both teams return to action on Wednesday at 4pm in NEWMAC action. Mount Holyoke travels to Springfield, while Wellesley hosts Coast Guard.
