NEW PALTZ, N.Y. – The Plattsburgh State women's lacrosse team jumped out to a 3-0 lead and trailed by just a goal at halftime, but the Cardinals were unable to keep pace in the second half in a 15-7 loss to SUNY New Paltz in State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) action on Monday afternoon at the North Turf Field.
 
New Paltz held a 31-13 edge in shots and a 9-4 cushion in ground balls, but Plattsburgh State held a 14-10 advantage in draw controls while going a perfect 17-for-17 on clears.
 
Plattsburgh State falls to 0-5 overall (0-5 SUNYAC) with the loss and next hosts North Country rival SUNY Potsdam on Wednesday, April 21, at 4 p.m. New Paltz rises to 5-2 overall (5-2 SUNYAC) with the win and hosts SUNY Cortland on Saturday, April 24, at 1 p.m. in its regular-season finale.
 
The Cardinals netted the first three goals of the game, as senior midfielder Frankie Porcaro (Bellport, N.Y./Bellport) scored 7:55 into the contest before first-year midfielder Jordan Kowalski (Westfield, Mass./Westfield) tallied woman-up and first-year attacker Fiona Fitzgerald (Long Beach, N.Y./Holy Trinity) found the back of the cage to go up, 3-0, with 17:22 left in the first half. New Paltz finally got on the board 25 seconds after Fitzgerald's goal, while sophomore midfielder Lindsay Guzzetta (East Islip, N.Y./East Islip) cashed in on a feed from Fitzgerald to hand Plattsburgh State a 4-1 advantage.
 
New Paltz scored four unanswered goals to take a 5-4 lead, but Porcaro rattled the back of the net on a pass from Guzzetta before Kowalski connected with Guzzetta for a goal to put Plattsburgh State back on top with 4:29 remaining in the opening stanza. The Hawks tied the game at 6-all on a goal by junior attacker Katie Zito with 3:41 to go, while first-year midfielder Kaitlyn Shaw's woman-up marker with 1:22 left gave the home team a 7-6 halftime lead, one it would not relinquish.
 
The Hawks scored the first four goals of the second half before Guzzetta broke up the surge with a goal on a pass from sophomore midfielder/defender Caroline Noia (West Nyack, N.Y./Clarkstown South) midway through the period. New Paltz closed the game on a four-goal run to spell the final score.
 
Guzzetta posted a career-high four points on three goals and an assist in addition to controlling seven draws, while Porcaro scored twice. Guzzetta and sophomore defender/midfielders Emma McLaughlin (Northport, N.Y./Northport) and Nikki Scioscia (Riverhead, N.Y./Riverhead) each caused two turnovers to pace the Cardinal defense.
 
For New Paltz, senior attacker Amy Hofer registered six points on five goals and an assist, while sophomore midfielder Maddie Gillis had five points on three goals and two assists. Hofer notched eight draw controls, while sophomore defender Cayci Hill caused six turnovers.
 
Junior goalie Alexa Cassidy (Warwick, N.Y./Warwick Valley) matched the single-game program record in saves with 12, while her counterpart, freshman goalie Hailey Aber, stopped four shots in the win for New Paltz.