Salisbury wins rematch 16-11 over Franklin & Marshall; Kim Cudmore leads the way
SALISBURY, Md. – The No. 2-ranked Salisbury University women’s lacrosse team defeated No. 1-ranked Franklin & Marshall College 16-11 on Saturday afternoon at Sea Gull Stadium in front of 425. The game was a rematch of the 2009 National Championship, which the Sea Gulls lost in heartbreaking fashion 11-10 in overtime.
Before today’s game even started, every player on Salisbury’s roster knew how important the contest was.
“Before the game, we had some alumni stop by the locker room and they were telling us how they felt after the National Championship game,” said SU senior attacker Kim Cudmore (Bel Air, Md.). “It definitely feels good for all the alumni, and everyone else involved, to win this game.”
The Sea Gulls (8-0) got on the board just two minutes into the game, with an unassisted goal by senior midfielder Jessica Chmielewski (Woodbine, Md.). The Diplomats evened things up with a goal by attacker Erin Dunne off an assist from 2009 All-American Blake Hargest. The maroon and gold answered with a pair of unassisted goals by Cudmore to push the lead to 3-1. Following another Diplomat goal, the Sea Gulls would score four-straight goals, including a pair by sophomore midfielder Ashley Cudmore (Bel Air, Md.) to give the Gulls a 7-2 lead with 15 minutes remaining in the first stanza. Over the final 15 minutes, the two teams would each score three goals, capped off by a Carrie Bray (Rockville, Md.) tally with 25 seconds remaining.
In the first half, Salisbury held a 19-11 advantage in shots, 13-7 edge on ground balls and were good on 4-of-7 clear attempts, compared to 3-of-6 for F&M. The maroon and gold were good on 2-of-3 free-position attempts, while they blanked the Diplomats on four attempts.
The second half was a game of back-and-forth as the teams traded three-goal spurts. F&M started the frame with the first three-goal run, including their first and only free-position goal of the afternoon with 26 minutes remaining. With the score just 10-8, the Sea Gulls ripped off three-straight unassisted goals coming from senior midfielder Beth Rhodey (Fallston, Md.), junior attacker Logan Bilderback (Arnold, Md.) and Chmielewski. The Diplomats made one final three-goal run to close the score to 13-11 with less than eight minutes remaining. Salisbury finished the game with a trio of goals, in which the final goal came on another Chmielewski score. The Woodbine, Md., native rushed the ball downfield for a successful clear and then flicked the ball over onrushing F&M goalkeeper Lidia Sanza’s head just inside the offensive box for the Sea Gulls' 16th and final goal of the afternoon.
For the match, Kim Cudmore had a team-high six points on two goals and four assists. Chmielewski and Bilderback each finished with four points on four goals. On the defensive side, junior goalkeeper Julie Ann Caulfied (Drexel Hill, Pa.) finished with seven saves as she notched her third victory over a nationally-ranked program this season. Seniors Jess Glazer (Ellicott City, Md.) and Sarah McKinley (Timonium, Md.) deserve special credit for their defensive performances, as Glazer caused two turnovers and scooped up two ground balls while McKinley won three draw controls and caused one turnover.
The Diplomats were led by Hargest, as she registered a game-high seven points on two goals and five assists. Senior attacker Sarah Veneski finished with four points on one goal and three assists. Stanza played all 60 minutes for F&M and finished with eight saves.
Salisbury ninth-year head coach Jim Nestor is proud of his team for how they played today, but is still focused on the remaining portion of the Gulls' difficult schedule. “Obviously it feels good to defeat Franklin & Marshall, but we’ve got Union coming up which is a very strong team out of New York,” said Nestor. “We are going to enjoy this one right now and start focusing on Union.”
The Sea Gulls and the Dutchwomen will square off this Friday at 4 p.m. at Sea Gull Stadium. The contest will be the first official meeting between the two programs.
