Murfreesboro, N.C. - Putting up a baker's dozen in the second half on Thursday, the St. Thomas Aquinas College Women's Lacrosse team broke an 8-8 halftime stalemate en route to a 21-14 triumph over Chowan University at Hawks Field in North Carolina.

STAC rises to 3-2 on the year, while Chowan falls to 0-2.

Hailey Galison led the Spartans' offense on the day with eight goals and three assists. Teammate Jada Garcia tallied seven goals and a helper, while Katelyn Cerrato chipped in five goals and two assists. Meghan Tarantino (1 goal, 1 assist) also added to the totals on the scoreboard for the maroon and gold. Goalie Lilah Magenheimer (W, 3-1) got the start in the net for STAC and stopped 12 of 26 shots faced to secure her third win in four tries.

On the other side of the field, Chowan was led by Blake Tutman, who tallied three goals and four assists. Victoria Brown (4 goals), Sarai Sanders (3 goals), Raelyn Blanchard (1 goal, 3 assists), Cameryn Barrow (1 goal, 1 assist), Shya Gambrell (1 goal) and Gracie Timkin (1 goal) added to the totals on the scoresheet for the Hawks. Goalie Kezia Ramos (L, 0-2) got the start for Chowan and turned aside 16 of 37 shots fired her way.

Hailey Galison opened and closed the scoring in the first quarter with a pair of goals for STAC, but in between Chowan was able to score five straight, courtesy of Victoria Brown (2), Blake Tutman (2) and Sarai Sanders to give the hosts a 5-1 advantage through the first 15 minutes of action.

After some quick, but pointed instructions, the maroon and gold found their game. The Spartans and Hawks traded the first four goals with Katelyn Cerrato, Cameryn Barrow, Jada Garcia and Blake Tutman all finding the back of the net for their respective teams to make it 7-4 in favor of Chowan. Hailey Galison and Katelyn Cerrato then combined to snatch the lead from the hosts with a pair of goals each to put STAC ahead 8-7. Unfortunately, Victoria Brown struck in the final minute of the second quarter to even things at 8-8, which is where things stood at the halftime break.

When the teams returned to the field, St. Thomas Aquinas bombarded Chowan's net with a barrage of goals...seven to be exact. Jada Garcia (2), Meghan Tarantino and Hailey Galison all netted goals with the Hawks serving cards for various offenses. Galison (2) and Garcia added additional goals in the stanza with the teams at even strength. Sarai Sanders and Shya Gambrell kept their team's deficit manageable by scoring goals of their own. STAC would take a 15-10 lead into the final frame.

A quick goal by Katelyn Cerrato to start the fourth quarter made it 16-10 Spartans, but Victoria Brown and Sarai Sanders would answer with consecutive goals to narrow the lead to just 16-12. A final surge by STAC via Jada Garcia (3) and Katelyn Cerrato put the game out of reach at 20-12. However, Chowan would not quit, scoring twice more before the buzzer (Raelyn Blanchard and Gracie Timkin). Hailey Galison closed the scoring for the maroon and gold via a successful free-position attempt, for her eighth goal of the match, to make it a 21-14 final.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE: 

• STAC outshot Chowan 44-31 (37-26 on goal) for the match.
• Hailey Galison tallied a game-high 15 shots, with 12 going on net for the St. Thomas Aquinas graduate student.
• Galison also gathered five of the Spartans 16 ground balls and caused seven Hawks turnovers.
• STAC won 23 of 37 draw controls on the afternoon, with Hailey Galison winning 12, Katelyn Cerrato grabbing six and Morgan VanDover earning five.
• The whistles were active throughout Thursday's match as the Spartans earned 8 cards (5 green, 3 yellow), while Chowan was issued 13 cards (5 green, 8 yellow).

UP NEXT:

STAC returns home and pays a visit to their crosstown rivals, Dominican University on Sunday, March 16. The Spartans and Chargers are set to do battle at O'Brien Field beginning at 12:00 p.m.