OWINGS MILLS, Md. -- Stevenson women's lacrosse continued its challenging nonconference slate, falling by a 16-8 count to Washington (Md.) on Saturday afternoon at a sun-soaked Mustang Stadium. 

Stevenson (0-3) was led in scoring by McKenna Blick's three goals, while Caroline Murphy nabbed a pair of ground balls on the day. Kellyann Coccia added her first collegiate goal with a marker in the fourth quarter with just 11 ticks remaining on the game clock. 

Meanwhile, Washington (Md.) (1-0) opened its season with a six-goal third period to take a comfortable lead as Colleen Keefe cashed in on a game-high six goals. The Shorewomen held the narrow 25-24 edge in shots, but began to hit their offensive stride into the second quarter. 

The Mustangs opened the game with a purpose, ripping several early chances from Mary Marc, Kaitlyn Kozlowski, Lan Le Crotty and Kara Yarusso over the initial six minutes of the contest. Murphy opened the scoring at 8:51 in the first quarter with her fifth goal of the season before the Shorewomen responded less than 60 seconds later to level the score at one. 

Murphy had two more scoring looks for the Stevenson in the opening frame before Sophie Shucosky turned away a free-position attempt with 34 seconds remaining. 

Sydney Allender netted consecutive tallies in the second quarter, pushing the Shorewomen to a 3-1 advantage. Kozlowski finished off a pass from Yarusso following a Stevenson timeout as the Mustangs regrouped, trailing 3-2. Two more tallies for Washington provided some separation at 5-2, while Crotty capped the scoring in the first half with 57 seconds left. 

Washington rattled off five unanswered goals at the onset of the third quarter to pull away. The Shorewomen outscored the Mustangs, 6-1, in the frame as Blick found the back of the net in the stanza. 

Both sides fired home four goals in the final quarter as Washington (Md.) maintained its advantage. Blick posted the first two goals of the fourth before Keefe responded with two of her own. From there, Yarusso and Coccia capped the scoring over the final 1:28 of the contest. 

Shucosky finished with 15 saves over 37 minutes before Caitlyn Lane took over in net. Sydney Wingate turned aside 19 shots for the Shorewomen. 

Up Next

• Stevenson: The Mustangs look to refocus, hosting preseason-ranked number three St. John Fisher to Mustang Stadium on Saturday, March 5 at 1:00 p.m. 
• Washington (Md.): The Shorewomen opens the home portion of the schedule against 18th-ranked York (Pa.) on March 2.