WEST HAVEN, Conn. - The Saint Michael's College women's lacrosse team trailed by two goals at halftime and by four midway through the second period before falling to sixth-ranked University of New Haven, 12-3, on Sunday at Kayo Field. The Purple Knights are 1-5 overall and 1-4 in the Northeast-10 Conference, while the Chargers, who qualified for last year's NCAA Tournament, improved to 7-1 and 4-1. New Haven's national ranking is according to the Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA).

Senior Melissa Jaskiewicz (Kensington, Md./Bethesda-Chevy Chase) tallied two goals, three ground balls and three caused turnovers for Saint Michael's, while sophomore Paige MacKinnon (Lowell, Mass./Lowell) found the back of the net once and added two draw controls. Senior Taylor Midgley (Hampton, N.H./Saint Thomas Aquinas) posted three ground balls and three caused turnovers, and sophomore Grace Gunning (Norwell, Mass./Norwell) came up with nine saves and six ground balls in 51:19. Junior Casey Curtin (Waltham, Mass./Ursuline Academy) had one stop in 8:41 of relief.

Sophomore Caitlin O'Brien (Branford, Conn./Branford) led New Haven with a hat trick, and junior Corinne Fisher (Jackson, N.J./Jackson Memorial) tacked on two goals, one assist and four ground balls. Among three other two-goal scorers, senior Kathryn Campbell (Mansfield, Mass./Mansfield) notched nine ground balls and four caused turnovers. Junior Marissa McDermott (Longmeadow, Mass./Wilbraham & Monson Academy) made four saves.

Saint Michael's put together its second strong opening half against a nationally-ranked foe in a little more than a week, trailing 5-3 heading into halftime after being behind by a 6-3 count against No. 1 Adelphi University on March 21. The Purple Knights held a 6-3 advantage in draw controls during the first 30 minutes against the Chargers - and 9-8 for the game - overcoming O'Brien's opening goal at 25:06 with a pair of markers by Jaskiewicz in the ensuing 3:07. Senior Courtney Piper (Wolfeboro, N.H./Brewster Academy) assisted the first goal and junior Maggie Dougherty (Verona, N.J./Verona) the second, at 21:59.

New Haven quickly responded, as O'Brien scored with 20:56 remaining and junior Courtney Ackland (Perth, Western Australia/Churchlands) put the Chargers ahead for good 30 seconds later. However, Saint Michael's kept the hosts, who entered the day averaging 15.0 goals, off the scoreboard again until Campbell netted a woman-down tally at the five-minute mark, with Gunning notching four stops and her teammates forcing five turnovers between goals. Fisher scored on a free-position attempt 1:22 later to make it 5-2, but MacKinnon netted one of her own at 51 seconds. Gunning turned aside another shot in the final 30 seconds to keep Saint Michael's within 5-3 at halftime.

Campbell scored at 26:40 of the second period to extend her team's lead, and Gunning came up with three more stops before New Haven pushed its advantage to 7-3 by 21:23. The Purple Knights held the Chargers without another shot on goal until they pulled away with a four-goal flurry in a matter of 2:50, beginning at 14:04. O'Brien's free-position marker at 11:14 made the score 11-3, and Fisher completed the scoring at 8:41.

Saint Michael's takes on Southern New Hampshire University for its second home game of the spring on Tuesday at 3:30 p.m.