The Buffalo State women’s lacrosse team fell in heartbreaking fashion on Saturday afternoon by the hands of the Oneonta Dragons (4-9) by a thin margin of 15-14.

This was the fifth game this year that was decided by two goals or fewer for Buffalo State.

“We have to figure out how to hold onto a lead like that,” head coach Lindsey Abbott said. “It was a painful learning curve for us, but hopefully it was a lesson learned.”

The loss for Buffalo State puts them at 4-9 through thirteen games, including an underwhelming 1-4 SUNYAC record.

With two teams yet to be beaten and five total teams over the .500 mark in the conference, things are looking bleak for Buffalo State’s playoff aspirations.

Despite having the fourth highest scoring offense in the conference as well as three players in the top ten in scoring, Buffalo State remains as the team with the most goals allowed through 13 with an alarming 164 goals against.

After leading the Dragons by four goals midway through the second half Saturday, Buffalo State’s lead was erased by six straight goals from Oneonta with under nine minutes to play in regulation.

Sophomore forward Alanna Herne mirrored her coach’s thoughts when asked how the game slipped away so quickly in the second half.

“Up to this point, we haven’t really been thrown into a situation like that. It was just a learning experience to help us secure those wins in the future,” she said. “We need to stay focused on the plays and better execute our passes.”

Shots were even at 32 apiece, and although the Dragons suffered more turnovers than Buffalo State, draw control was the biggest factor on the stat sheet.

Oneonta had the draw controls advantage over Buffalo State by a +11 margin, winning 21 to the Bengals 10.

Herne and senior attacker Sarah Lorusso continued to carry Buffalo State on the offensive side of the field, finishing the game with five points each.

Herne continued her strong sophomore campaign as she hit the 45-goal mark in only her 13th game.

She has already been awarded the SUNYAC offensive player of the week twice in 2016.

In 2015, Herne had 47 goals in 17 games. She’s taken a big step forward this season.

Lorusso spoke out about a lack of confidence and carelessness with the ball and faulted those issues for the blown lead.

“When we are playing like that, we just need to be more confident and take care of the ball better,” she said. “We need to keep our composure and not allow the momentum to change hands.”

Junior midfielder/defenseman Cassie Saint-Vil continued her recent goal streak, scoring three against the Dragons. She has now scored five goals in the past two contests and has seven on the year.

Sophomore goalkeeper Elyse Stark started the game for Buffalo State, allowing six goals on nine shots while sophomore goalkeeper Megan Doyle gave up the remaining nine goals on 13 shots.

If Buffalo State wants to get back into the race the playoff race, their defense and goaltending will have to be much stronger than it has thus far.

Next up, the Bengals hit the road as they get set to take on the 6-3 Oswego Lakers.

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