SALISBURY, Md. – The seventh-ranked Salisbury University women's lacrosse team lifted the 2025 Coast-to-Coast Athletic Conference (C2C) Championship trophy on Saturday afternoon at Sea Gull Stadium, meeting and defeating the Christopher Newport University Captains in the conference title game for the fifth straight year by a 13-9 final score.
The Captains (8-11, 1-1 C2C) began the bout on a 4-0 run, prompting a Salisbury timeout at the 10:32 mark in the opening quarter. The Sea Gulls (14-4, 2-0 C2C) sandwiched the fifth CNU goal with strikes from
Audrey Harrington and
Regan McDonnell to trail by three through 15 minutes, 5-2.
SU locked in to begin the second quarter, flipping the script with their own 4-0 run spanning nearly six minutes to snatch the team's first lead on the day, 6-5. Goals from
Grace Doyle and
Julianna Ott kickstarted the run before McDonnell roped in an eight-meter strike and a Harrington-Ott connection pushed the Sea Gulls in front.
CNU closed the half on a three-goal run to secure an 8-6 lead at the break. The Sea Gulls shut the Captains out in the third stanza while adding three of their own to jump back in front heading into the final 15 minutes. McDonnell's third net rustle of the matchup returned the margin to one before
Avery Dunbar tied the matchup at eight and
Lauren Hackett fired the eventual game-winning goal with 2:01 to play in the third.
Liz Haney joined the scoring column to open the fourth quarter before scores from Ott and Hackett along with
Miranda Mears' 100th career strike helped put the game out of reach. The Captains pushed their ninth goal across in the final four minutes, but the Sea Gulls fended off their C2C counterparts to bring a 23rd conference championship trophy back to Salisbury.
GAME NOTES
- Regan McDonnell posted her third career hat trick and her second in the last three games in the C2C title tilt, firing three goals on four shots while securing two draw controls, causing two turnovers and digging out two grounders. In her last three games, McDonnell has scored eight goals, chased down six draw controls and caused five turnovers.
- Julianna Ott fired her second hat trick in as many games, adding three draw controls while putting seven of her nine shots on goal in the win.
- Audrey Harrington logged three points on one goal and two assists.
- Lauren Hackett deposited both of her shots in the back of the net against the Captains while causing one turnover.
- Natalie Held locked down a game-high four draw controls and added three ground balls while causing one Captain cough-up.
- Grace Doyle dug out three ground balls and caused two turnovers while adding a goal.
- Madison Hare and Reagan Davis combined for four caused turnovers and two ground balls.
- Paige Ellis (12-4) earned the win after turning away eight Captain tries across the full 60 minutes.
The Sea Gulls now wait to see if they receive a bid to the 2025 NCAA Division III Women's Lacrosse Tournament with the selection show set for Monday, May 5th at 10:30 a.m. on ncaa.com.
Salisbury University is a proud member of NCAA Division III with primary membership in the Coast-to-Coast Athletic Conference, along with affiliate membership in the New Jersey Athletic Conference (football, men's & women's swimming) and the Coastal Lacrosse Conference (men's lacrosse). With over 500 student-athletes in 23 varsity sports, SU is recognized as one of the nation's 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 won a combined 23 team national championships, 24 individual national championships, and 203 conference championships, and have produced 51 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.
