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West Long Branch, NJ – Monmouth is flying high again. The top-seeded Hawks outscored No. 3 Bryant 4-2 over the final 26 minutes of the game to claim a 9-7 victory and their second straight Northeast Conference Women’s Lacrosse Championship on Sunday afternoon at Kessler Stadium.
 
MU, which improves to 13-6 overall with its 11th straight victory, earns the league’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament, set to begin on Friday, May 10 at campus sites. Bryant, meanwhile, ends its season at 10-8 overall.
 
Monmouth senior Cassie Campasano (West Islip, NY/West Islip (Jacksonville)) led all scorers in the game with four goals – all in the first half – while NEC Rookie of the Year Marial Pierce (Middleburg, VA/St. John’s Catholic) buried three, including the game-winner with 10:06 to go in the second half. NEC Offensive Player of the Year Kaleigh Gibbons (Candia, NH/Central) handed out four assists, three of which came in the first 20 minutes of play.
 
Making their 15th NEC Tournament appearance in program history, the Monmouth Hawks looked as if experience was going to carry them over Bryant in the first half, jumping out to a 3-1 lead in the first 10 minutes. The Bulldogs did not back down though, as they cut to lead to one on two occasions and trailed by a single goal at the half.
 
All-NEC Rookie Team selection Lauren Descalzo (Hauppauge, NY/Hauppage) made it a 3-2 game with 14:53 to play before starting a two-goal run after Campasano struck consecutively for the Hawks. Descalzo stifled the MU momentum with her second of game at the 3:09 mark, and All-NEC First Team pick Lisa Vendel struck at 2:07, taking the teams into the break with a 5-4 score.
 
Bryant built off the late momentum in the second, as Kimberley Sniffen (Redding, CT/Joel Barlow) evened the slate at 5-all on an unassisted play with just 56 seconds elapsed. Despite the quick score, MU would buckle down on defense and hold Bryant to just two goals over the remaining 29:04.
 
Emily Barbieri (Parsippany, NJ/DePaul Catholic) started a string of goals that spanned nearly 13 minutes at the 26:18 mark. Pierce connected off a feed from Gibbons at 13:31, just 52 seconds before Sniffen broke up the run at 12:39.
 
Pierce would get in on the scoring action again less than three minutes later, striking on an unassisted play with 10:06 to go. It would prove to be the game-winner, with Karlee Dean (Medford Lakes, NJ/Shawnee) adding insurance in the form of the Hawks’ ninth goal at 8:57.
 
Sniffen pulled the Bulldogs within two thanks to a feed from Descalzo at 4:25. But MU would take possession in the final two minutes and run out the clock, sealing its fifth NEC Title in program history.
 
Overall, Bryant outshot Monmouth 24-20 in the game, including 12-9 in the second half. They also held the advantage in ground balls (21-19). MU controlled the draw circle, winning 10 compared to the Bulldogs’ eight.
 
NEC Goalkeeper of the Year Katie Donohoe (Peterborough, Ontario/Holy Cross Catholic Secondary) made 10 saves in moving to 13-5 on the season. Bryant’s Brianna Watt (Babylon, NY/Babylon) recorded five stops in the loss. She ends her season at 10-7.
 
Following the conclusion of the game, five Hawks were honored for their play, including Gianna D’Urso (Fairfield, NJ/West Essex), who was named the tournament’s MVP. Pierce, Gibbons, Campasano and Gracie Williams (Reston, VA/Herndon) earned spots on the all-tournament team. Vendel, Watt, Sniffen and Aileen Pearman (Fair Haven, NJ/Rumson-Fair Haven Regional) highlighted the Bryant honorees.