COLLEGEVILLE, Pa. – Ursinus senior defender Nicole Hanby's (Bear, Del./William Penn) hat trick propelled the 11th ranked Bears to a wet and windy win tonight at Eleanor Frost Snell Alumnae Field over visiting Washington College by a 5-4 count.
The game between two of the Centennial Conference's top teams had critical seeding implications for the upcoming Centennial Conference tournament heading into the final week of play.
Hanby, who scored all three of her goals in the second half, netted her final goal in the 69th minute of action, off of a penalty corner inserted by senior forward Corinne Freeman (Freehold, N.J./St. John Vianney).
Washington College struck first, with freshman attack Claire McAuliffe scoring in the ninth minute, assisted by Emily Trees. Freeman knotted the game at 1-all during the 27th minute, then junior forward Catherine Bitterly (Rumson, N.J./Rumson-Fair Haven) gave the Bears their first lead of the contest, scoring midway through the 29th minute of action for a 2-1 advantage.
After Washington tied the score at 2-all just before halftime, the Shorewomen took a 3-2 lead on a goal by McAuliffe.
Hanby's goal in the 65th minute proved critical for the Bears, as it both tied the match at four-all and shifted the momentum handedly into Ursinus' favor.
Senior goalkeeper Jill Lukens (Furlong, Pa./C.B. East) had nine saves on the evening, bringing her season total to 91 for the season.
Ursinus travels to Dickinson Saturday.