BLOOMSBURG, Pa. - The No. 10 Gannon women's lacrosse team used a 6-1 run at the end of the first half to earn an important 10-8 victory at Bloomsburg Saturday afternoon. The decision kept the Lady Knights in a third-place tie with Mercyhurst in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC). It also moved the squad one game ahead of Indiana (Pa.), Bloomsburg and East Stroudsburg for the right to host a first-round home match.

Gannon needed only 60 seconds to strike first, scoring on Rachel DerCola's (Rochester, N.Y./Brighton) goal off a Jess Fugate (Wooster, Ohio/Wooster) pass.

Bloomsburg responded by holding Gannon scoreless for the next 11 minutes and 27 seconds while scoring three consecutive goals. The Huskies led 4-2 midway through the first half, before the Lady Knights took control with six of the half's final seven goals.

Mary Eshenour (Waterloo, N.Y./Waterloo) caught fire, recording three straight unassisted goals in a span of two minutes and seven seconds. The final score gave the Lady Knights a 6-4 lead with 5:54 showing on the clock.

Following a Bloomsburg goal at the 3:13 mark, Gannon concluded the half with a goal from Nikki Schattinger (Auburn, N.Y./Auburn) at the 2:10 mark and another Eshenour tally with five seconds left. The late push gave the Lady Knights an 8-5 advantage at the intermission.

The final 30 minutes turned into a defensive affair as only five goals were scored. The first one didn't come until over seven minutes elapsed in the half. Schattinger's free-position goal accounted for the first score with 22:32 left in regulation.

The two programs exchanged two goals apiece after that as Gannon rebounded from a tough overtime loss Tuesday afternoon with a 10-8 victory. Neither team was able to dent the scoreboard in the final 9:47 of regulation.

Eshenour led the Gannon offensive unit with four goals. Schattinger and DerCola added three and two scores, respectively. Sarah Grzybinski (New Market, Md./Linganore) completed the scoring with one goal. Three different Lady Knights recorded assists in the victory.

Bloomsburg out-shot Gannon 26-23, but the draw controls were even at 10. Margaret Maslyn (Penn Yan, N.Y./Penn Yan Academy) turned away 12 shots in net, reaching double digits in saves for the fourth time this season.

Gannon, ranked 10th in the latest Intercollegiate Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) national rankings, improved to 7-3-1 overall and 4-2 in the PSAC with Saturday's victory. Bloomsburg dropped to 6-5 overall and 3-3 in conference play. The Lady Knights return to action Wednesday, April 6 against second-ranked Lock Haven at Gannon University Field. Game time is scheduled for 4 p.m.

For a complete box score from Saturday's Gannon-Bloomsburg women's lacrosse match, please click here.