FLUSHING, N.Y.- Caldwell University women's lacrosse junior Arden Kassaleh (Pompton Plains, N.J.) and sophomore Samantha Murphy (Pompton Plains, N.J.) each netted six points as the Cougars defeated Queens College 21-17 for their first win of the season.
 
The Cougars improve to 1-1, while the Knights drop to 0-3.
 
Caldwell scored the first four goals of the game as Kassaleh, freshman Emily Lasko (Jackson, N.J.), senior Rachel Lucia (Egg Harbor Township, N.J.) and sophomore Jules Wesler (New Hyde Park, N.Y.) scored for the Cougars.
 
Queens answered with four goals to tie the game with 20 minutes left in the half. Murphy netted a pair of goals to put the Cougars back in front, while Kassaleh added a tally to extend their lead to 7-4. The Knights added a pair of goals to close the gap to 7-6.
 
The Cougars ripped off seven of the next eight goals to pull ahead 14-7 late in the half. Lasko and Lucia each added two goals, while Murphy posted a goal and an assist. Queens netted a goal in the final minute, while Kassaleh added a goal in the final seconds for a 15-8 halftime lead.
 
Freshman Jenna Steelman (Mays Landing, N.J.) scored early in the second half but Queens tallied three straight goals to cut the score to 16-13. Caldwell answered with five consecutive goals as Murphy and senior Jessica Collum (Wayne, N.J.) each tallied two.
 
Kassaleh capped the run with Caldwell's final goal of the game with 5:17 remaining in the game. The Knights scored four goals in the final four minutes as the Cougars held on for the win.
 
Kassaleh and Murphy each posted five goals and one assist in the win. Lasko totaled three goals and two assists, while Lucia netted three goals. Kassaleh added five draw controls and four ground balls.
 
Freshman Mia Monacelli (Egg Harbor Township, N.J.) recorded six saves in the first half of play. Senior Nancy Benedetto (Jupiter, Fla.) came on for the second half, recording 14 saves.  
 
Caldwell returns to action on Thursday, March 14 as they host Lock Haven University at 4 p.m. at Essex Valley School in West Caldwell. Thursday's game will be the women's lacrosse program's "Green Game" as part of the athletics department's mental health awareness initiative during the 2018-19 academic year.