‘Cats down UVM in regular-season finale

Kate Keagins recorded five goals and four assists to lift the University of New Hampshire women's lacrosse team to Saturday afternoon's 18-10 America East victory against the University of Vermont in both teams' regular-season finale at Moulton-Winder Field.

UNH improved to 10-6 overall and 4-2 in America East under first-year head coach Michael Daly. This marks the sixth time in the last seven years that the Wildcats have reached double digits in wins. UVM ends the season at 4-11, 1-5.

Keagins, whose four assists also marked a personal best, was named UNH's America East Player of the Game, and led a total of seven Wildcats who recorded multiple points. Shaunna Kaplan tallied three goals and three assists for six points. She also contributed two ground balls, two caused turnovers and one draw control. JoJo Curro (four goals), Hayley Rausch (two goals, two assists) and Ilana Cohen (four assists) all finished with four points apiece. Cohen's four assists are a career high and the four points match her personal best. Allie Bratton (two goals) and Deb Dale (goal, assist) both had two points.

Kathleen O'Keefe was credited with four saves – all in the first half – as well as two caused turnovers and one ground ball. Allie Duclos finished with a team-high four ground balls and also tallied three draw controls, as well as two caused turnovers.

UVM took a 1-0 lead at 26:42 when Samantha Stern scored on a shot from the middle of the fan inside the right post.

The Wildcats responded with three goals in a 59-second span to take a 3-1 lead. Keagins ignited the spurt on a drive down the middle of the fan in which she scored on a bounce shot to tie the score, 1-1, at 25:59.

Moments later, a stick check by Kaplan forced a turnover in which she corralled the ground ball to create a 1-on-1 breakaway. She attacked down the middle, hesitated to beat the defender and scored from close range at 25:28 to give the Wildcats their first lead.

Curro then curled from behind the net to the right post and continued across the goalmouth before depositing a shot inside the left post for a 3-1 lead at 25:00. 

Curro scored with just under twenty minutes remaining in the half when she one-timed Rausch's feed from the left wing under the crossbar to reestablish a two-goal cushion of 4-2.

After a UVM goal, New Hampshire pushed the lead to 5-3 at 15:58 when Cohen's pass from behind the net found Keagins cutting down the middle, who scored on a high shot.

UVM scored goals 51 seconds apart – at 10:38 and 9:47 – to level the score, 5-5. 

The Wildcats scored four consecutive goals to build a 9-5 advantage. Kaplan scored just off the left post at 9:04 to give the visiting ‘Cats a lead they would not relinquish.

A ground ball by Curro then set up a UNH transition attack in which Keagins scored an unassisted goal on a low, sidearm shot from the right wing at 6:24.

Bratton scored on a high shot at the left doorstep to give the Wildcats an 8-5 lead at 2:02. Rausch then scored a free-position goal at 1:05 to extend the advantage to four goals.

UVM scored twice in the final 20 seconds of the first half to lift the Catamounts within 9-7 heading into halftime.

UNH scored the initial nine goals of the second half, and held the home team scoreless for 28 minutes to break the game open. Curro scored consecutive goals at 27:57 and 23:21, and then Keagins netted back-to-back goals at 18:17 and 14:29 to give UNH at 13-7 lead.

Jenny Simpson converted Kaplan's pass into a goal at 11:00, then Bratton and Kaplan scored 42 seconds apart - at 8:56 and 8:14 - to push the advantage to 16-7.

Rausch scored off a feed from Kaplan at 6:48 to give the Wildcats a double-digit lead, 17-7, and Dale netted a goal off a pass from Keagins at 3:15.

Vermont scored three goals in the final 1:59 of the game to close the scoring. UNH recorded a 42-22 shot advantage that included a 25-4 second-half margin. The Wildcats also had the edge in ground balls (15-8) and draw controls (16-14), and committed fewer turnovers (11-18).

Kaplan climbed into sixth place on UNH's career points leaderboard with her six-point performance. She now has 106 goals and 78 assists for 184 points.

Keagins recorded her 50th career point with the fourth of her nine points. 

New Hampshire will begin postseason play at the America East Women's Lacrosse Championship tournament next week. The third-seeded Wildcats will play Boston University in a May 6 semifinal game.