COLCHESTER, Vt. -  The Saint Michael's College women's lacrosse team dropped a 17-9 decision to No. 20 Saint Anselm College during Northeast-10 Conference play at Duffy Field on Tuesday. The Purple Knights, facing their third straight nationally-ranked opponent and 11th overall in the last 16 contests since 2014, slip to 3-8 overall and 3-7 in the league, while the Hawks move to 5-6 and 4-5. Saint Anselm's ranking is by the Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) national poll.

Senior Courtney Piper (Wolfeboro, N.H./Brewster Academy) and junior Steph Bonewald (New London, N.H./Proctor Academy) both registered three goals for Saint Michael's, with Bonewald adding three ground balls, three draw controls and two caused turnovers. Seniors Kate Boyer (Standish, Maine/Bonny Eagle), Melissa Jaskiewicz (Kensington, Md./Bethesda-Chevy Chase) and Kim Liberty (Jericho, Vt./Mount Mansfield Union/Saint Lawrence) each scored once, with Jaskiewicz collecting three ground balls and causing three turnovers and Liberty assisting on a tally.

Senior Taylor Midgley (Hampton, N.H./Saint Thomas Aquinas) had two draw controls and two caused turnovers, while junior Annie Henderson (Hancock, N.H./Northfield Mount Hermon/Saint Lawrence) scooped up four ground balls. Sophomore Grace Gunning (Norwell, Mass./Norwell) made five saves in 49:15, while first-year Kaitlyn Wurzer (Lee, N.H./Berwick Academy) went untested during 10:45 of relief.

Senior Marissa Daly (Marshfield, Mass./Thayer Academy) logged six points on four goals and two assists for Saint Anselm, with junior Erin Marshall (Woburn, Mass./Woburn Memorial) recording two goals, three assists and three draw controls. Junior Caitlin Villareal (Portsmouth, R.I./Portsmouth Abbey) provided four goals and two ground balls, while first-year Emma Palumbo (Sudbury, Mass./Lincoln-Sudbury Regional) scored twice. Senior Allee Ramzi (Cumberland, R.I./Mount Saint Charles) stopped eight shots and picked up three ground balls.

Saint Anselm jumped out to a 5-0 lead just 7:07 into the game as Daly potted two goals and assisted on another. Bonewald broke up the Hawks' scoring spree with a free-position marker 9:42 into play. The visitors then scored three consecutive goals and owned an 8-1 lead before Bonewald scored again with 10:58 to go in the half. Saint Anselm ended the half with a 10-3 lead after notching two of the final three goals, as Piper's goal with 2:51 left was sandwiched between tallies by junior Bebe Butts (Windham, Maine/Windham) and first-year Erica Mattila (Westford, Mass./Westford Academy).

After the Purple Knights scored two of the opening three goals by 24:14 of the second half, the Hawks stringed together four consecutive tallies in a 2:55 span. During the run that saw the visitors pull out to a 15-5 advantage, Marshall had a hand in each score as she netted one goal and assisted on the other three. Liberty then scored for the hosts with 18:57 to go before the Hawks received a goal from both juniors Michelle Kudlate (Waltham, Mass./Waltham) and Katie McKenna (Danvers, Mass./Danvers) for a 17-6 margin. Saint Michael's ended the game with three unanswered markers over the final 9:55 as Boyer, Piper and Jaskiewicz each scored.

The Purple Knights host Southern Connecticut State University for Senior Day at 12 p.m. on Saturday.