Second Half Rally Falls Just Short for QU Women’s Lacrosse at Fresno State

Thursday, March 16

Fresno State Soccer & Lacrosse Field - Fresno, CA

6:00 PM (EST)

Quinnipiac University

1-5

Fresno State

6-2

Quinnipiac

Fresno State

Second Half Rally Falls Just Short for QU Women’s Lacrosse at Fresno State

3/16/2017 11:16:00 PM | Women's Lacrosse

Box Score

Alex Hlesciak Pumped in Career High Five Goals for QU, Previous Career-Best for the Senior Was Two

By: QU Sports Information

FRESNO, California – A furious rally bid from the Quinnipiac women's lacrosse team – spearheaded by the miraculous scoring output from senior Alex Hlesciak (Lumberton, New Jersey) – fell just short in the final minutes as the Bobcats fell to Fresno State, 9-8, on Thursday afternoon.

Trailing 9-6 with just 10:51 remaining, the task at-hand was daunting as the Bobcats needed to overcome a three-goal deficit in the waning moments of the second half. But as the tide seemed to be shifting in favor of the Bulldogs, the Bobcats pushed back with consecutive goals in a span of 1:23 that pushed the gap to just 9-8 with more than eight minutes to go.

Coming down the stretch, every possession was magnified and Fresno State continued to be on their heels against the never-say-die Bobcat squad. Kiera Kelly (West Islip, New York) forced a pair of turnovers in the final 10 minutes, including one with 7:29 left that gave the Bobcats the ball back looking for the equalizer.

In their offensive set, Quinnipiac fired a pair of shots on-goal that were saved by keeper Laurel Maunder, including one from Hlesciak who at that point had tallied five of the last six goals scored by the Bobcats.

Quinnipiac continued to hold up on the defensive end, holding the Bulldogs scoreless over the final 10:51 but couldn't convert against an equally impressive Fresno State defensive unit headlined by the keeper Maunder who managed 15 saves facing 23 shots on-goal.

The final minute featured a nail-biting finish as Fresno State couldn't convert on the offensive end, turning the ball back to Quinnipiac who had 58 seconds to tie the game and send it into overtime. Timeout was called by the Bobcat bench with seven seconds remaining and a last-second pass in front of the crease was deflected and knocked away by a Fresno State squad that immediately jumped up to celebrate their sixth win of the season (already a single-season program record).

Quinnipiac (1-5) put together perhaps their best 60-minute effort of the season as the Bobcats gave the Bulldogs (6-2) everything they could handle despite coming in with an impressive resume of non-conference wins already this season. The Bobcats outshot the Bulldogs, 27-24, marking the first time in 2017 that Quinnipiac has outshot their opponent. Quinnipiac also forced Fresno State into 17 turnovers while committing a season-low 12, another season-first that saw the Bobcats total fewer turnovers than their opposition.

Hlesciak was outstanding on the day, totaling five of Quinnipiac's eight goals, including a stretch where she scored four straight goals for the Bobcats. Prior to the game, Hlesciak had a career-best of two goals (achieved six times), but the senior more than doubled her individual career high as she took her game to a whole new level against the Bulldogs.

Ellie Swenson (Ipswich, Massachusetts), Brianna Fitzgerald (Norwalk, Connecticut) and Victoria Bobinski (Kinnelon, New Jersey) each added one goal as Victoria scored her first career goal as a Bobcat off a feed from her twin sister Ashley Bobinski (Kinnelon, New Jersey). Kelly spearheaded the defensive unit with three ground balls and three caused turnovers while Kyle Larkin (Holbrook, New York) posted seven saves on 16 shots on-goal.

The first half was a back-and-forth affair for the first 15+ minutes as the score remained tied 3-3 before a crucial 3-0 run for Fresno State over the course of 1:19 gave the Bulldogs their biggest lead of the game (6-3) that remained the same through halftime.

Quinnipiac faces another tough test as their road swing continues on Saturday as the Bobcats will fly back east, across three time zones before landing and driving to face Hofstra at 12:00 PM.