EWING, N.J. – The No. 1-ranked Salisbury University women's lacrosse team hit the road on Saturday afternoon to square off against No. 5-ranked The College of New Jersey. In a back-and-forth contest which showcased two of the top five teams in the country, the Sea Gulls were unable to keep up with the Lions' second-half offensive burst and suffered their first loss of the season, 16-12.

The Sea Gulls (13-1, 5-0 Capital Athletic Conference) struggled at the start of the first half as the Lions (9-0) netted the first two goals of the game to take a 2-0 lead. Salisbury would take over the lead with a trio of goals before TCNJ struck again, tying up the contest with 23 minutes left to play before halftime. That story of a back-and-forth battle would repeat itself for a large portion of the first half before the maroon and gold buckled down and scored four straight goals to take a commanding 9-5 lead with 5:17 left to play; the Lions tacked on one more score before both teams headed into the huddle at halftime. Salisbury outshot TCNJ 21-16 in the first half; 12 of those shots were on goal.

It was more of the same in the second half as both teams exchanged goals and fought for possession. The Lions opened up scoring just 47 seconds into the second half as Lion midfielder Alison Jaeger capitalized on one of TCNJ's 10 free position opportunities. Less than one minute later, senior attacker Beth Rhodey (Fallston, Md.) answered back off of an assist from senior attacker Kim Cudmore (Bel Air, Md.). From that point on, though, Salisbury couldn't stay with TCNJ's scoring as the Lions capitalized on a series of shots late in the second half to capture the victory.

Salisbury was led by Rhodey as well as junior midfielder Aileen McCausland (Phoenix, Md.), who each netted a team-high three goals on the day. Cudmore led the team in assists, dishing out six; the total marks her career-best. Junior goalkeeper Julie Ann Caulfield (Drexel Hill, Pa.) made seven stops in her 59 minutes between the pipes.

The non-conference loss certainly does not derail the Sea Gulls from the hunt for their eighth straight (10th overall) CAC Championship, as the maroon and gold remain undefeated in CAC play. Salisbury will look to preserve this perfect record as it squares off against CAC opponent Marymount (Va.) University tomorrow night. The game is set to begin at 8 p.m.