KEENE, N.H. 4/16/11 – The Keene State College women's lacrosse team, led by senior Emily Persano's (Somers, Conn.) two goals and three assists, had a balanced scoring effort in their 19-4 Little East Conference victory over Rhode Island College on Saturday afternoon at Owl Athletic Complex.

The Owls and the Anchorwomen "Played for the Cure" in an effort to raise money for breast cancer in memory of Persano's mother, Laury Persano, who lost her battle with breast cancer this past summer. "This meant a lot to me," said Persano. "I've been looking to support the cause, and to have my teammates help me raise money is an awesome feeling."

As for the game, the Owls held the Anchorwomen scoreless into the second half and stormed out to a 10-0 lead on senior midfielder Missy Luzzi's (Oakland, N.J.) unassisted tally at the 27:14 mark of the second half.

RIC (4-6, 0-3 LEC) hit the scoreboard with 25:57remaining in the contest on a free position shot from sophomore midfielder Courtney McKiernan (Hope, R.I.) to cut KSC's lead to 10-1.

Down the stretch the Owls continued to add to their lead, outscoring the visitors 9-3 over the game's final 23 minutes capped by junior Brittany Bastarache's (Somers, Conn.) third goal of the game for the 19-4 final score.

Bastarache and sophomore midfielder Lauren Brown (Agawam, Mass.) each had a game-high three goals for KSC. Seniors Lauren Sawyer (Westbrook, Maine) and Jill Kirk (Port Jefferson Station, N.Y.) both scored once and dished out two assists in the conference victory.

Junior attacker Nicky Drolet (Somersworth, N.H.) was the lone RIC player with multiple points with her two-goal effort. McKiernan and freshman midfielder Jessalyn O'Neil (North Providence, R.I.) scored the other goals for the Anchorwomen in the loss.

The Owls outshot the Anchorwomen 38-13 in the contest, and only had 13 turnovers to RIC's 24.

KSC freshman goalies Erin Taylor (Brewster, N.Y.)  and Libby Curran (Londonderry, N.H.) split time in between the pipes for the Owls. Taylor didn't allow any goals in the first half and made four saves, while Curran made two stops and allowed the four Anchorwomen goals. RIC netminder Taryn Carbone (Cranston, R.I.) made 12 saves, including three on free-position attempts, and allowed all 19 goals in the losing effort.

Next up for the Owls is a home Little East Conference matchup against in-state and conference rival Plymouth State on Tuesday at 3:30 p.m. at Owl Athletic Complex. RIC returns to action on Tuesday as well, traveling to Southern Maine for a 4 p.m. start.