CORTLAND, N.Y. 5/11/11 – The Keene State women's lacrosse team picked the wrong time to play Cortland State.  After an early exit in last year's NCAA tournament, the Red Dragons, who were making their 13th straight NCAA appearance, came out breathing fire this time around.  Unable to extinguish the fire, the Owls saw their season come to an end with a 21-3 loss to the Red Dragons in a first-round NCAA tournament game played at Cortland Stadium Complex on Wednesday.

Keene State, which saw its nine game winning streak come to an end, concludes its season with a 13-6 record.  The fourth ranked Red Dragons, which tied a school record for wins (19-1), will host a pair of regional games this weekend with the winner moving on to the final four. 

Keene State had a difficult time keeping up with a Cortland team that compliments its high skill level with an intense and aggressive style of play.  "They are very quick and always in motion," said KSC Coach Katie Arsenault.  "They move the ball up the field very efficiently."

Falling behind 3-0, Keene State finally got on the board when senior Jamie Albert (Southington, Conn.) scored on a free position shot.   That turned out to be the Owls only goal in the half.  Cortland reeled off the next eleven goals to take a 14-1 halftime lead.  Playing the first half with several starters on the bench, the young Owl defense was no match for the fluid Red Dragon offense that continuously had open players cutting toward the net. 

Despite hold their own with 12 draw control, Keene State had trouble clearing the ball against a swarming Red Dragon defense, committing 26 turnovers. "They always had three or four players on us," said sophomore midfielder Lauren Brown (Agawam, Mass.) "We couldn't get free for an open pass."

Keene State managed to score two more goals in the second half.  Senior Emily Persano (Somers, Conn.) fed Nicole Curry (Hampstead, N.H.)  for a goal and junior Caitlin Corace (Mahopac, N.Y.) scored on a free position shot.

Twelve different players scored goals for Cortland. Sophomore Maria Di Fato led the way with four goals and two assists while junior Lindsay Abbott led all scorers with seven points on three goals and four assists.

Freshman goalie Erin Taylor (Brewster, N.Y.) had a busy afternoon in goal for KSC, turning aside eight shots.   The Red Dragon tandem of Ally Levy and Shana Hutchinson each played a half in goal.  Levy made four saves in the first half while Hutchinson wasn't credited with a stop.

Although it was a tough way to conclude their careers, the eight Owl seniors can take solace in knowing that they took the program to another level, capturing a pair of Little East Championships and NCAA berths in the past three years. "Our goal at the start of the season was to play in the NCAAs," said Albert. "The fact that the seniors were able to do that twice in their careers shows the program is heading in the right direction."

Arsenault hopes that the NCAA game serves as a learning experience for the returning Keene State players.  "I hope we can take something positive out of the game and I think we will," said Arsenault.  "When freshman Ashley Borjeson (Londonderry, N.H.) came off the field the first thing she said to me was 'this is really good for us to play a team like this.  It's only going to help us get better."'