MONTCLAIR, N.J. - The Haverford College women's lacrosse team (1-0) toppled a tough Montclair State (0-1) team, ranked No. 19 in the Nike/U.S. Lacrosse Magazine poll, by a 13-10 final score on Saturday to open their 2022 campaign. On a chilly afternoon on the Montclair campus, the Fords used a dominating fourth period to pull away from the hosts for good in the first ever meeting between the two sides. Haverford was opening the season outside of Pennsylvania for the first time since 2008.
Roma Hladky and Tiffany Mikulis each tallied hat-tricks to lead the Fords in the contest. Julia Curran and Sam Silverman also added to the scoring, netting two goals apiece. Katharine Ference registered a trio of assists, beautifully setting up her teammates throughout the game in a strong showing on the attack line. Senior Hannah Lopez also tallied two assists.
Haverford began the contest with Hladky finding the back of the net in the opening 45 seconds. However, an immediate answer from Rhiannon Brown of the Red Hawks leveled the score at 1-1. Montclair State added another goal from Kaitlyn Arcede to take the early lead. However, Haverford took back the lead after rattling off three unanswered goals from Julia Curran, Mikulis, and Silverman, making the score 4-2 in favor of the visitors. After the Red Hawks scored at the 4:38 mark in the first period, Mikulis added her second goal, beating the buzzer with two seconds on the clock before the break.
The game slowed down dramatically in the second period, as both teams hunkered down on the defensive ends of the field. Arcede opened the scoring at the 12:11 mark, and Nancy Tucker followed that strike with a goal at the 11:21 mark. However, the next goal would not come until 28 seconds left before halftime. Montclair State's Brown gave the Red Hawks the one-goal lead going into the intermission.
In the third, the game picked back up as seven goals were scored between the two teams in the stanza. For Haverford, Jordan Denaver scored her first goal of the season. Her goal gave the Fords an 8-7 lead didn't last long because Brown would answer right back for Montclair State. The flow of the game was just that, each team getting a goal and giving one up shortly after. The score was tied at nine going into the final period. It was in that moment that the Fords pulled away from the Red Hawks.
Haverford opened the fourth period with another flurry of unanswered goals, much like the first period. Lizzie Healy, Silverman, and Mikulis all scored goals before Hladky put the game away with a goal that made the score 13-9, a commanding advantage entering the waning moments of action.
In total, the Fords outshot the Red Hawks 27-17. Both teams finished the game even on ground balls with 15 apiece. Kate Severtson and Ference led the way for the Fords in ground balls, each collecting four while Severtson notched four caused turnovers in an impressive performance. Sarah Cahn faced 14 shots in goal, earning four saves in the contest.
The Fords will now wait until Saturday, March 5, for their home opener at Swan Field. The team will take on Scranton with the start time slated for 1 p.m.