The fourth-seeded Oswego State women's lacrosse team advanced to the SUNYAC Championship Semifinals with a 21-10 win over No. 5 Potsdam Bears on Tuesday afternoon at Laker Turf Stadium. It was the Lakers' first appearance in the tournament since 2005 and their first victory in the championship since an 8-7 win over Brockport in 2001.
Oswego's 21 goals was shy of a season-high mark by just one, as the Lakers beat SUNY Canton 22-6 on April 22.
On Tuesday, the Lakers owned nearly every stat category, starting with a 45-17 advantage in shots. The home team also held edges in ground balls (19-10), draw controls (18-15) and caused turnovers (12-6).
Over the first 11 minutes, Oswego and Potsdam traded goals to a 3-3 with 19:39 on the clock. The Lakers then rattled off 10 of the game's next 12 goals to gain a sizable lead that the team was never endanger of losing the rest of the way.
The Shattuck sisters paced all players in the quarterfinal contest, as Erannan Shattuck went for eight points and Teresa Shattuck went for six. Senior E. Shattuck played the role of distributor with six of her points coming on assists while freshman T. Shattuck got the bulk of her points on goals (4).
Seniors Esther Gabriel and Lindsey Eggers each finished with three-point outings, with Gabriel scoring all of hers while Eggers went for two goals and a helper. Joining the seniors with three points was sophomore Briana Kimble, all on goals. Finishing with two goals apiece were Emily Lange and Gemma O'Kane while Jayme McCreary, Kelsey Henderson and Kendall Appelbaum each chipped in one tally.
On the draw, Gabriel and T. Shattuck wound up with a team-high three wins apiece. E. Shattuck had a game-high three caused turnovers while Heather Titanic, Danielle Walker and McCreary each forced two. Nicole Granteed and Angela Ponto both scooped up a game-high four ground balls, with Ponto earning the win between the pipes, making five saves.
Oswego will now play the nation's unanimous No. 1 team - and the SUNYAC Championships' top-seed - Cortland at 12:30 p.m. on Friday. Both semifinal games and the title contest will be hosted at Cortland's Stadium Complex.
