MORRISVILLE, N.Y.--The SUNY Potsdam women's lacrosse team (3-3) finished on top in a 12-11, back-and-forth win at Morrisville State (0-5) on Saturday afternoon. Senior captain Rachael Huntley (Canton, N.Y./Hugh C. Williams) had three goals and two assists to lead the Bears. Junior captain Cayla O'Connor (Dexter, N.Y./General Brown) had a pair of goals and led the team with eight draw controls and four caused turnovers.
 
The Bears got off to a quick start, scoring the contest's first two goals less than two minutes in. Both O'Connor and sophomore attack Alli Stark (Walworth, N.Y./Gananda) scored on free-position attempts. The Mustangs answered with three consecutive goals in the next seven minutes. Courtney Cavellier started it off with a free-position goal, followed by Gianna Branca. Chelsea McNeal scored the last goal during the stretch with at 21:13. O'Connor tied the game back up at 3-3, after causing a turnover in Potsdam's attack area. The Bears then retook the lead with sophomore midfielder Sam Mace (Canton, N.Y./Hugh C. Williams) scoring off the pass from Huntley at 14:41. The lead lasted less than a minute, before Branca scored her second. The offense settled until Cavellier netted her second to give Morrisville a 5-4 lead with 6:47 left. Potsdam regained the lead with 4:18 to play. Huntley got notched her second assist of the game on senior midfielder Danielle Pound's (Henderson, N.Y./Immaculate Heart) goal. Huntley then beat Mustang goalie Sara Gelster on a free-position attempt to give the Bears a 6-5 advantage. Branca closed the half with two more goals to give Morrisville a 7-6 lead at the break.
 
The second half played out the same as the first, with both teams trading goals and leads. Sophomore attack Lane Perl (Fulton, N.Y./G. Ray Bodley) knotted the game at seven less than 30 seconds into the second half. However, Branca answered a couple minutes later to make it 8-7. After Huntley buried her second of the game at 20:00, McNeal untied it 3:10 later. The Bears were able to score two consecutive goals and grab 10-9 advantage with 7:36 to play. Sophomore midfielder Alexa Ferrer (Warwick, N.Y./Warwick Valley) scored both goals with the first coming off the assist from Perl. The Mustangs did not fold and tied the game off the stick of Santini with 5:50 left. Potsdam kept its composure with Stark scoring her second a minute later on a helper from Ferrer. McNeal kept the pressure on with an unassisted goal to make the score 11-11 with 4:05 left. With the time winding down, Huntley scored the go-ahead goal with 2:13 remaining. The Bears' defense stepped up and kept the Mustangs away from the net for the rest of the game, securing the 12-11 victory.   
 
Bears junior goalie Katie Longamore (Dexter, N.Y./General Brown) finished with 10 saves, while Gelster had six.
 
Stark and Ferrer ended the game with two goals apiece. Mace, Perl and Pound each had a goal, with Perl adding an assist.
 
Branca finished the competition with five goals and two assists, with McNeal ending with three.
 
Potsdam is back in action on Tuesday, March 27, when the Bears host Hartwick at 4 p.m. at Maxcy Turf Field.