For the fifth straight season, the Binghamton University women’s lacrosse team failed to win a single America East Conference game as they ended their 2009 season with a loss to the University of New Hampshire, 21-9.

“First half I thought we came out to play,” said Bearcats head coach Tony Zostant, according to a Binghamton University press release. “The heat was definitely a factor, but both teams had to play in the heat. We did a good job on draw controls and we played to the end.”

In the first seven minutes of the match the teams traded back-to-back goals. The Wildcats then pulled ahead after a deadlocked score of 2-2 by putting in three goals in a span of four minutes. Junior Lizzie Wright ended the run, making the score 5-3 with 17:46 left in the first half.

The Wildcats extended their lead with two more goals, but Binghamton answered back with two of its own from sophomore Kate Tesi and freshman Emily Thon. The Wildcats put up two more back-to-back goals, but Binghamton could only answer back with one goal by Tesi to make the score 9-6.

Tesi’s goal was the last of the half for the Bearcats as UNH blew the game open, going on an 11-0 run extending from the end of the first half into the start of the second half to run the score up to 20-6. With 15 minutes left in the half the Bearcats tried to narrow the gap with a small run of their own, but could only tally three goals, not nearly enough to make up the gap that the Wildcats created.

Tesi had a team-high of three points while Ali Castiglie and freshman Meg Brown had two assists and two goals, respectively. Wildcat senior Michaela Hardy had a game-high four goals and one assist.

The last time the Bearcats (3-13, 0-6 AE) won a match against an America East team was in 2004 over Vermont, 12-11. That victory is the only conference win that Binghamton has mustered in the entire history of the program, dating back to the program’s inception in 2002.