EWING, N.J. – The fifth-ranked Salisbury University women's lacrosse team used a crucial goal in the final 31 seconds to overcome the 10th-ranked Lions of The College of New Jersey by a 10-9 final on Saturday afternoon at the TCNJ Field Hockey and Lacrosse Complex. Leah Vilov surpassed 100 career points in the victory.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Lions struck first, netting the day's opening tally in the first 41 seconds. TCNJ struck with consecutive goals later in the frame, taking a 3-0 lead with 5:25 left in the period.
• Grace Doyle got the Sea Gulls on the board with a solo strike 15 seconds later, narrowing the margin to two. The score held through the remainder of the frame, sending the top 10 foes into the second quarter with a 3-1 score.
• Salisbury showcased a blistering offense in the second stanza, firing four unanswered goals through the first nine minutes. Miranda Mears buried a free-position fling before Meridith Price's helper found Leah Vilov for the tying goal with 10:30 remaining in the half.
• Doyle collected her second goal not quite three minutes later, taking advantage of free position to give SU a 4-3 lead. Camryn Pepper connected with Mears to round out the rally, placing Salisbury ahead 5-3 with just over six minutes left in the first half.
• Alexandra Parker fed Mears her third goal of the day, but that score was sandwiched by a pair of Lion attacks to narrow SU's halftime advantage to one, 6-5.
• The defenses clamped down in the third quarter as the two offenses combined to muster just three goals. The Lions tied the matchup two minutes into the frame on a man-up, free-position goal before Price and Vilov linked again to retake a 7-6 advantage with 8:44 to play in the frame.
• TCNJ tied the contest at 7-7, scoring with just over three minutes to play in the third to send the matchup into the fourth in a deadlock.
• Salisbury began the final quarter with a pair of goals, with Mears netting her fourth of the day in the opening 46 seconds and Mary Hanzsche finding Parker just over four minutes later to add a two-goal cushion, 9-7.
• SU's lead held until the final three minutes. A Lion goal with 2:40 sliced the deficit to one before TCNJ's ninth goal came with 80 seconds to go, evening the affair at 9-9.
• The Sea Gull struck the final nail with 30.7 seconds remaining, when Vilov dished to Hanzsche for the game-winner, 10-9.

SALISBURY GAME NOTES

• Leah Vilov surpassed 100 career points in Saturday's triumph, logging two goals and an assist for a third straight appearance and causing two turnovers.
• Miranda Mears scored a team-high four goals in the win, burying both of her free-position looks. Mears has scored in 12 of 13 appearances and ranks second on the squad with 24 goals.
• Grace Doyle netted a pair of goals and secured two draw controls.
• Alexandra Parker and Mary Hanzsche each scored and assisted in the win, with the duo combining for two ground balls and two caused turnovers.
• Natalie Held picked up a game-high five ground balls, forcing two Lion miscues and controlling three draws.
• Abby Fleishell secured three ground balls while causing a turnover and controlling a draw.
• Kaitlyn Hunsinger improved to 10-3 on the season, making 11 saves across the full 60 minutes.

TCNJ GAME NOTES

• Ally Tobler led the Lions with four goals while tallying four draw controls.
• CJ Kole and Marissa Lucca each added braces in the loss.
• Kileigh Pfluger caused three Salisbury turnovers and picked up two ground balls.
• Kira Sides and Meghan Hogan each nabbed three ground balls.
• Madison Wernik brought down a team-high five draw controls.
• Julia Charest was tagged with a tough loss, making eight saves across the full 60 minutes.

UP NEXT

• The Sea Gulls return home on Wednesday, April 17, hosting the St. Mary's (Md.) Seahawks in the squad's penultimate home game of the regular season.
• Wednesday's contest is scheduled for a 5 p.m. start from Sea Gull Stadium.

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Salisbury University is a proud member of NCAA Division III with primary membership in the Coast-to-Coast Athletic Conference, along with the New Jersey Athletic Conference for football and men's and women's swimming, and the Coastal Lacrosse Conference for men's lacrosse. With over 500 student-athletes in 21 varsity sports, SU is recognized as one of the most competitive intercollegiate athletics programs regardless of division, featuring dedicated coaches and staff that foster excellence on and off the field. The Sea Gulls have celebrated 23 team national championships, 24 individual national champions, 197 conference championships, and 45 Academic All-Americans.

To Make Tomorrow Yours at Salisbury University, and learn more about Sea Gull Athletics' tradition of excellence, visit www.SUSeaGulls.com or follow on social media @SUSeaGulls.