SYRACUSE, N.Y. - The Saint Michael's College women's lacrosse team opened its season with a 17-5 loss at No. 4 Le Moyne College on Saturday at Ted Grant Field in Northeast-10 Conference play. The Dolphins, who are 4-1 overall and 1-0 in the league, were ranked in the latest Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) national poll.

Among the Purple Knights' first four opponents in 2015, three are either ranked or receiving national votes. Dating back to last spring, Saint Michael's is amid a nine-game stretch during which eight foes are ranked or receiving votes. In their first of three games in four days, the Purple Knights received two goals from senior Courtney Piper (Wolfeboro, N.H./Brewster Academy). First-year Kealy Moyna (Yonkers, N.Y./The Ursuline School) scored once while adding four draw controls and two ground balls in her college debut, senior Melissa Jaskiewicz (Kensington, Md./Bethesda-Chevy Chase) tallied and controlled two draws, and classmate Kim Liberty (Jericho, Vt./Mount Mansfield Union/Saint Lawrence) also found the back of the net.

Junior Steph Bonewald (New London, N.H./Proctor Academy) had four draw controls, helping the Purple Knights hold a 16-6 advantage in that category, and sophomore Grace Gunning (Norwell, Mass./Norwell) took the loss after making seven first-half saves and snagging four ground balls. Junior Casey Curtin (Waltham, Mass./Ursuline Academy) added five stops in the second stanza.

Juniors Erica Geremia (Camillus, N.Y./West Genesee/SUNY Cortland) and Maggie Monnat (Baldwinsville, N.Y./C.W. Baker) both had eight points for Le Moyne, with Monnat tallying a hat trick and five assists, while Geremia scored twice with six helpers. Senior Julia Suriani (Buffalo, N.Y./West Seneca East) and sophomore Amari Pollard (Baldwinsville, N.Y./C.W. Baker) both scored four times, and junior Claire Monnat (Baldwinsville, N.Y./C.W. Baker) posted three goals and two assists. The quintet accounted for 29 of the Dolphins' 31 points. Senior Molly Marbut (Edgewater, Md./South River) made 10 saves.

Purple Knight senior Sarah Fortin (Dover, N.H./Saint Thomas Aquinas) won the opening draw before Moyna worked free to score the first goal just 21 seconds into her college career. Fortin also nabbed the next draw, but a Purple Knight turnover allowed Suriani to tie the game just 29 seconds after Moyna's marker, kicking off a 3-0 run that Suriani capped with her second tally at 25:48 of the opening half. Gunning denied a free-position shot one minute later before Moyna grabbed the ground ball, and Piper was awarded an eight-meter shot at the other end, where she converted at 24:09 to make it 3-2.

Le Moyne responded with the next 11 goals, as Maggie Monnat scored 29 ticks after Piper to kick off the run. Claire Monnat had three goals and two assists in the stretch, which took 13:56 to elapse, while Maggie Monnat notched two goals and three assists. Geremia and Suriani both scored twice. A Gunning takeaway led to a successful Purple Knight clear with a little more than six minutes left, and Piper snapped her team's drought at 5:38. However, Maggie Monnat scored 2:16 before halftime to give the Dolphins a 14-3 advantage by the intermission.

The hosts held a narrow 3-2 scoring edge in the second period. Pollard scored twice, including netting the stanza's initial tally at 18:54, while Jaskiewicz and Liberty found the back of the net.

The Purple Knights are at Assumption College, which is receiving national votes, on Monday at 4 p.m.