EASTON, Mass. - The Saint Michael's College women's lacrosse team continued a three-game stretch against nationally-ranked opponents on Saturday with a 17-3 loss at No. 6 Stonehill College during Northeast-10 Conference play at W.B. Mason Stadium. The Purple Knights, who have now played 10 of their last 15 games since 2014 against nationally-ranked teams, are 3-7 overall and 3-6 in the league. Stonehill, whose ranking is according to the Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA), is now 13-1 and 10-1.

Seniors Kate Boyer (Standish, Maine/Bonny Eagle) and Melissa Jaskiewicz (Kensington, Md./Bethesda-Chevy Chase) and junior Steph Bonewald (New London, N.H./Proctor Academy) all scored for Saint Michael's, while Jaskiewicz picked up two ground balls and Bonewald snagged a pair of draw controls. First-year Susie Ellicks (Acton, Mass./Acton-Boxboro Regional) collected three ground balls, and junior Annie Henderson (Hancock, N.H./Northfield Mount Hermon/Saint Lawrence) had two. Sophomore Grace Gunning (Norwell, Mass./Norwell) made seven saves in 32:51. Junior Casey Curtin (Waltham, Mass./Ursuline Academy) and first-year Kaitlyn Wurzer (Lee, N.H./Berwick Academy) appeared in relief, with Wurzer stopping one shot in 9:20 during her college debut.

Sophomore Elizabeth Vetter (Great River, N.Y./East Islip) netted four goals and added seven draw controls for Stonehill, while senior Lizzie Lane (Sandwich, Mass./Bishop Stang) also scored four times. Classmate Mikayla Couch (Towaco, N.J./DePaul Catholic) added a hat trick and two assists, and senior Brooke Rudden (Hopkinton, Mass./Hopkinton) dished off five helpers. Classmate Ashley Armstrong (Northboro, Mass./Algonquin Regional) made six saves.

Stonehill scored five times in the opening 7:41, as Vetter tallied the first two markers by 28:24 of the opening half before adding a third on a free-position shot with 22:19 remaining. Boyer scored off of junior Maggie Dougherty's (Verona, N.J./Verona) feed to cut into the deficit at 16:05, but Couch broke her team's 10:08 scoreless drought with a free-position goal with 12:09 left. Bonewald countered with an eight-meter marker at 9:11 before the Skyhawks tacked on five goals in the final 5:29 of the stanza to pull ahead by an 11-2 count at halftime.

Lane and Couch scored in an early 1:19 span of the second half before Saint Michael's held the hosts off the board again until 14:30 remained, when the Skyhawks began a run of three goals in a matter of 5:10. Jaskiewicz added a free-position goal at 6:06, but Lane scored again with 2:08 left to complete the scoring.

The Purple Knights kick off a three-game homestand against No. 17 Saint Anselm College on Tuesday at 3:30 p.m.