FARMINGTON – University of Maine at Farmington women’s lacrosse (5-7, 3-5) junior midfielder Rhi Jackson (Saco, Maine/Waynflete) recorded a hat trick in Monday afternoon’s 7-3 North Atlantic Conference win over Thomas College (2-9, 2-6) at Prescott Field.
The Beavers jumped out to a 2-0 lead after Carly Raymond (Topsham, Maine/Mt. Aratat) and Mara Balboni (Oakland, Maine/Messalonskee) came through with goals.
Thomas got on the board under five minutes to go in the half but UMF answered in the final minute with Jackson scoring her first goal of the contest on a free position shot. At the break, the Beavers held a slim 3-2 advantage.
The Terriers clawed back with a goal three minutes into the second half but the Beavers reeled off three unanswered scores in a ten-minute stretch to extend their lead to 6-3.
With six minutes to go, Thomas tallied its final goal of the afternoon and Raymond scored her second goal of the conference meeting with three minutes to close the door on the Terriers.
Jackson’s three goals came on four total shots and the junior caused nine turnovers, won five draw controls, and scooped up five ground balls. In addition to Raymond’s two goals, she contributed three assists, picked up five ground balls, and caused four turnovers.
Sophia LaVallee charted two goals for the Terriers with the third goal coming from Erin Nellligan. Ashley Gooden and Samantha Greenlaw caused four turnovers for the Thomas defense.
UMF earned the No. 6 seed in the 2016 North Atlantic Conference Women’s Lacrosse Championship Tournament, which begins with quarterfinal round games on both Friday, April 29, and Saturday, April 30.
The Beavers will travel to third-seeded New England College on Saturday for their quarterfinal round matchup. UMF has clinched a spot in the conference postseason tournament for each of the past seven seasons.
Tournament action culminates with the NAC Championship game on Saturday, May 7, at the highest remaining seed.
The NAC tournament champion will earn an automatic berth in the upcoming 2016 NCAA Division III Women’s Lacrosse Championship.
