DANBURY, Conn. – Madison Ratchford scored five goals and had an assist to help the No. 2 seed Western Connecticut State University Wolves escape with an 11-10 win over the No. 3 seed University of Southern Maine Huskies in the semifinals of the 2025 Little East Conference Women's Lacrosse Championship Tournament. Junior Cierra Hill (Pembroke, N.H./Pembroke Academy) had an impressive all-around game for the Huskies. Hill scored three goals and an assist in addition to leading the team in caused turnovers with three, ground balls with five and draw controls with five. Sophomore Eliza Pattershall (Readfield, Maine/Maranacook) matched Hill's offense output with three goals and an assist as well.
 
Fifth-year senior Kiaya Gatchell (Portland, Maine/Deering) also had multiple points for the Huskies with a goal and an assist.
 
The Records:
No. 3 Southern Maine: 13-6 (6-2 LEC)
No. 2 Western Connecticut State: 15-2 (7-1 LEC)
 
Series History:
Today was the 30th time that Huskies have played the Wolves. Western Connecticut State leads the series 17-13, including wins in the last six meetings. The teams have squared off in the LEC tournament six times with the Wolves tying up the series with tonight's win.
 
The Goaltenders:
Southern Maine: Lydia Laslavic (13-6), 60:00, 11 goals allowed, four saves
Western Connecticut State: Molly Bresnahan (15-2), 60:00, 10 goals allowed, 10 saves
 
How It Happened:

• The Wolves took a 1-0 lead on a free-position goal by Isabella Pota with 12:13 left in the first quarter. The Huskies answered in less than 30 seconds on a goal by Maddie Kinney (Topsham, Maine/Mt. Ararat) after a nice feed by junior Katelyn D'Appolonia (Yarmouth, Maine). Ratchford reclaimed the lead for the Wolves 21 seconds later with another free-position goal. The Huskies then tied the game on a goal by Hill after she intercepted a pass on a clear attempt. Hill then set up Pattershall to give the Huskies a 3-2 lead and Gatchell extended the lead to 4-2 with a free-position goal.
• Senior Elaina Hanselmann (Sanford, Maine) made the USM lead 5-2 with 11:15 left in the second before the Wolves rallied to tie the game with a 3-0 run that featured a goal by Savannah Kom and back-to-back goal by Ratchford. The teams went into halftime tied at 5-5.
• Hill scored twice to open the third quarter and give the Huskies a 7-5 lead before Kom got the Wolves within a goal at 7-6 with 10:31 to go in the quarter. Pattershall and Faye Junge then traded goals before senior Anna Byers (Milford, Ct./ Joseph A. Foran) made the USM lead 9-7 with 7:29 left with Pattershall assisting on the goal.
• The Wolves scored three times in the final four minutes of the third to take a 10-9 lead. Ratchford scored two of those goals while Junge also scored on a free-position shot. Morgan Brace and Pota recorded assists during the rally.
• Kom added an insurance goal with the Wolves with just over 10 minutes left in the game by converting a woman-up opportunity. Tough defense and a pair of saves by Bresnahan kept the Wolves ahead but Pattershall cut the lead to 11-10 with 2:42 to go. The Huskies won the draw control but a turnover cost them their final possession and allowed the Wolves to run out the clock and punch their ticket to the championship game.

 
Inside The Stats:

• The Wolves had a slight 25-52 lead in shots despite the Huskies leading 20-15 in shots on goal.
• The Huskies led 19-13 in ground balls led by Hill's five. Laslavic and junior Britney Hill (Pembroke, N.H./Pembroke Academy) each had four to tie for second on the team.
• D'Appolonia logged three ground balls and also caused a pair of turnovers.
• WestConn scored on three of their four free-position shots while the Huskies went one-for-four.
• The Huskies' 13 wins and .686 winning percentage this season are both program records.

 
Up Next:
Tonight's loss concludes the 2025 season for the Huskies.