BOSTON – Emmanuel Women's Lacrosse (2-2) opened their home slate at Roberto Clemente Field on Tuesday night, dropping a non-conference matchup to Plymouth State (4-0), 15-8. The Panthers pulled away with strong performances in the first and third periods to secure the win.

Avery Robillard opened the match with a shot on target for the Saints, but Plymouth State quickly took control. Julia Donovan put the Panthers on the board with a man-up goal at the 12:23 mark, followed by Jenna Stowell's extra-man goal just 38 seconds later. The visitors kept rolling, adding two more goals in the next two minutes to jump out to a 4-0 lead.

Emmanuel battled to close the gap, as Ella Marschitz put the Saints on the board with 9:50 on the clock. Madeline Wright followed with a goal two minutes later, and Marschitz struck again at 4:34 to bring the deficit to one. Plymouth State answered with two late goals, taking a 6-3 lead after the first quarter.

Despite Plymouth State's 7-2 shot advantage in the second quarter, both offenses slowed. Each team managed just one goal in the frame, keeping the Saints behind at 7-4 heading into halftime.

Plymouth State extended their lead with a strong offensive push in the third quarter. After Maddie Hunt opened the scoring, Emmanuel's Anna Nichols responded, but the Panthers followed with three straight goals to go up 11-5. Both teams added one more before the break, sending the Saints into the final 15 minutes trailing 12-6.

Marschitz struck again to open the fourth-quarter scoring, but the Saints couldn't close the gap. Jenna Stowell added a late Panthers goal in the final minute, sealing a 15-8 win for Plymouth State as they picked up their fourth straight victory to start the season.

Plymouth State held a 31-18 advantage in shots and a 17-9 edge in draw controls. Donovan led the Panthers' attack with four goals and a game-high four assists, while Hunt added three scores. In net, Margie Black secured the win with six saves over 45 minutes. For the Saints, Marschitz led the way with three goals, while Wright added in two goals and two assists.

Up next, Plymouth State will have a week long break before returning to action next Tuesday (3/18) against non-conference opponent Bowdoin at 2:00 PM. Emmanuel will travel to Worcester State on Thursday (3/13) for 6:00 PM non-conference contest.