FDU-Florham 14, Lebanon Valley 12
 
LVC Starters
Dills, Kelley, Eck, Mellendick, Ernst, Federowicz, Ernst, Hathaway, Brewer, Little, Gabriel, Venezia, Oliveras (GK)
 
FDU Starters
Nemeth (GK), Wood, Haddad, Elk, Damon, DeFelice, Eble, Chaoush, Michaelides, Shirey, Petrucelli, Pape
 
How It Happened
Lebanon Valley put together a furious rally in the final minutes but ultimately came up just short in a 14-12 loss to FDU-Florham at a snowy Arnold Field on Friday afternoon, March 8.
 
The Flying Dutchmen (1-3) were led by big offensive efforts from Jaclyn Little and Veronica Venezia, with each player tallying four markers. Brittany Hathaway added a hat trick, while Jen Eck was strong on the defensive end, registering five ground balls and a pair of caused turnovers.
 
Trailing 13-9 with less than five minutes remaining, LVC nearly completed the comeback thanks to three goals from Hathaway in a span of two and a half minutes. Makenzie Kelley assisted on the final two scores but the home team eventually ran out of time, allowing the Devils (1-0) to escape with the narrow victory.
 
The Dutchmen trailed 7-5 at the break but pulled even thanks to back-to-back goals from Little early in the second half. The visitors extended their lead back to two with 26:17 left to play but Venezia answered with a pair of snipes to draw her team even at the 21:54 mark.
 
After nearly 10 scoreless minutes, FDU-Florham took control thanks to four goals in a row with less than 11 minutes left. LVC answered in the guts of the game but was unable to completely dig itself out of the hole in the closing seconds.
 
Venezia netted the game's first goal before the Devils reeled off five unanswered scores. Little, Venezia and Kelley found the back of the net as the first half wound down to cut the deficit to a more manageable total heading into halftime.
 
Inside the Numbers
- LVC finished with advantages in total shots (30-25) and shots on goal (23-21).
- The Dutchmen finished 14-of-17 on the clear, while FDU went 11-of-20 on clear attempts.
- Lebanon Valley totaled 17 ground balls, compared to just 10 for the Devils.
- LVC won the draw control battle 15-10.
- Veronica Venezia racked up a team-high six points on four goals and two assists.
- Jaclyn Little tallied four scores on five shots.
- Brittany Hathaway recorded a hat trick, with all three of her goals coming in the game's final five minutes.
- Makenzie Kelley added a goal and a pair of helpers.
- Jen Eck scooped up a team-best five ground balls, caused two turnovers, and won two draws.
- Julia Brewer and Morgan Ernst each collected three ground balls.
- Brewer, Bailey Dills, and Emily Federowicz caused two turnovers apiece.
- Dills won a team-high five draw controls.
- Hannah Oliveras made seven saves in goal for the Dutchmen.
- FDU goalkeeper Megan Nemeth made 11 stops on the day.
- Caroline Pape led the way for the Devils with seven total points.
 
Who's Next?
The Dutchmen will travel to York (Pa.) for their next contest on Wednesday evening, March 13.
 
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