After suffering a road loss to Bryant and Stratton Syracuse on Saturday, the Panthers bounced back with their first conference match and win of the season.
Freshman
Katie Benson (Clifton Park, NY / Shenendehowa) scored an ACPHS-record seven goals on the afternoon, leading the Panthers to a 10-0 conference win over The King's College. With the win, ACPHS improves to 5-2 overall and 1-0 in the HVIAC. The King's College drops to 0-3 overall and 0-2 in the league.
The game started off on a scary note, after freshman
Molly Mancini (Galway, NY / Galway) collided with King's junior goalkeeper Victoria McAlister on a 50-50 ball just a few minutes in. McAlister was helped off after a five-minute stoppage, forcing freshman defender Megan LeBlanc in between the sticks. Not long after, Benson opened the scoring when in the 8
th minute, she chased down a long through-ball from junior
Brittany Fuller (Whitney Point, NY / Whitney Point). Benson beat the emergency keeper far post to give the Panthers a 1-0 lead. That would be the theme of the day, as freshman
Erin Tersegno (Webster, NY / Webster Thomas) made it 2-0 after she chased down a long ball of her own from junior
Julia Rosenberger (Williamstown, NJ / Williamstown) in the 12
th minute. Benson completed her hat-trick thereafter, netting in the 13
th and 14
th minutes and putting the game to bed early. The first half was rounded off with both Benson and Tersegno scoring again off of passes behind the defense, and senior
Nicole Burline (Sauquoit, NY / Sauquoit Valley) scoring her 1
st goal of the season.
Benson continued her scoring ways in the second half, finding the back of the net in the 46
th and 48
th minute, both from close range. The second goal was her sixth of the game, breaking the previous record of five set by Alexa Schooley '16 on October 22
nd, 2011 in an 11-0 win over Sarah Lawrence College. Benson finished the scoring with her 17
th goal of the season in the 55
th minute, again off a pass from Tersegno. With ACPHS up 10-0, the defense was able to see out the rest of the game without issue. Benson showed her versatility in the 62
nd minute, when she was subbed on into goal, in relief of junior
Amy Jagareski (South Glens Falls / South Glens Falls). The Lady Lions didn't manage a shot on goal all day, leaving both Jagareski and Benson untested. Benson added one assist to her big stat line, with Tersegno and Rosenberger both recording two. The Panthers racked up 38 shots all together, putting 22 on goal. Jagereski improves to 5-2 overall and earned her first conference victory, while LeBlanc falls to 0-1.
The Panthers are back in action this Saturday, the 26
th at 12pm against non-conference opponent SUNY-Delhi here at ACPHS Athletic Field. The Lady Lions look to rebound at home on Sunday, October 4
th against Fisher College.