Aston Township, PA- The CMSV Women's Lacrosse team opened their season with a trip to Aston Township, PA to take on the Knights of Neumann University. The Dolphins dropped their first matchup of the year, 21-17.

The Dolphins got out to a hot start as they jumped out to a 6-2 lead in the first period. Junior Colleen MacNeil had a huge impact offensively in the first period as she scored the first two goals and assisted on the next for CMSV. Freshman Alicia Rodriguez joined MacNeil in the scoring category as she scored three goals in the first period and assisted on another. Junior Ava Starace was another Dolphin that contributed to the early lead. 

The Dolphins were matched by the Knight offense as they scored 5 goals in the second quarter to tie the game, 7-7, but MacNeil put in her 5th goal of the day to take the 8-7 lead.

Macneil put in another goal for the Dolphins to tie the game at 9, but a goal from the Knights left the Dolphins trailing 10-9 going into halftime. 

The second half saw the Dolphins struggle as the Knights went on a 5-0 run before MacNeil would score another goal to slow down the Neumann offense. Senior Sophia Raccolin stepped up in the Dolphin comeback as she scored two straight goals. MacNeil and Starace both scored to cut the deficit to three at the end of the 3rd period, 17-14. 

The Dolphins made a strong push to finish the game as Raccolin scored back to back goals to cut the lead to one, but a costly penalty allowed for the Knights to gain momentum and score four straight goals. MacNeil put one final goal past the Knights goalie, but it wasn't enough to secure the win. 

Freshman Macey Forg, who got her first taste of college lacrosse, recorded 11 saves on the day. MacNeil finished the game with eight goals and three ground balls, both team highs. Raccolin ended with four goals while Rodriguez and Starace combined for five goals. 

The Dolphins will look to regroup as they take on Maritime College in a Skyline Conference matchup on Wednesday March 9th.