BOX SCORE
Edwardsville, PA – Visiting Marywood dropped a 17-4 non-conference decision to Wilkes University in the Pacers' season finale Thursday afternoon. With the win, the Colonels improved to 6-9 on the season while the Pacers close out their inaugural campaign with a 3-12 record.
Marywood took a 1-0 lead just 1:14 into the game when Laura Gierman (Columbus, NJ) scored unassisted. Wilkes tied it just over a minute and a half later on a Justine Leggio tally. The Colonels would add four more goals to take a 6-1 lead with 10:49 to play in the first half.
Gierman got one back for the Pacers when she scored at the 9:15 mark, but the hosts netted the final three goals of the opening stanza to take a 9-2 lead into halftime.
After Wilkes scored five minutes into the second half, Allie Sodl (Coplay, PA) scored her 16th goal of the season, but the Colonels responded with five straight goals to erase any hopes of a Marywood comeback.
Gierman, playing in her final game in a Marywood uniform, completed her hat-trick by scoring an unassisted goal with 10:50 to play. Gierman finished her solid senior season with 26 points on 23 goals and three assists for the first-year Pacers.
Wilkes' Kathleen Edwards closed out the scoring with an unassisted marker with 6:47 to play.
Leggio led all scorers with seven goals, while sister Ashley added three goals and five assists. Gierman's three goals led Marywood, who got a game-high six groundballs from Sodl.
Wilkes out-shot Marywood 43-21 and also held a 31-25 edge in groundballs. Each team turned the ball over 15 times.
Stacy Fimmano picked up the win for the Colonels after making 10 saves, while Katie Sullivan (Merrick, NY) took the loss despite making 14 saves in the first 49 minutes of the contest. Danielle Mira (Keansburg, NJ) stopped two Colonels' shots in relief of Sullivan.
Marywood, who lose only Gierman to graduation, will return the majority of their team next season as the Pacers look to build on the successes of their inaugural campaign.
