East Providence, RI-Sophomore striker Jessica Taylor (Standish, ME) notched a hat-trick with three unassisted goals, leading Lasell to a 4-0 win against Johnson & Wales University in a GNAC women's soccer contest on Thursday evening. The win assured the Lasers a home contest and a third place seeding in the quarterfinals for the Great Northeast Athletic Conference Tournament.
Taylor got Lasell on the board early connecting on the first shot of the game from five yards out, at 3:59. Just three minutes later, Taylor tore through the middle of the field to connect with the ball off a corner kick taken by freshman defender Alexis Vumbaco (Meriden, Conn.). After dodging through traffic, Taylor secured the second goal, putting Lasell up 2-0.
Shortly before the teams broke for halftime, Lasell's freshman forward Reegan Brackett (Scarborough, ME) propelled a shot from 15 yards out and found the back of the Wildcats net. Lasell went into the intermission with a comfortable three goal advantage.
Upon returning to the action, Taylor struck for the final time with her third unassisted mark, at 55:44.
Lasell's sophomore goalkeeper Elizabeth Stickley (Mashpee, Mass.) earned the win in the Lasers' net turning away six shots for her fifth season shutout.
Lasell is now 9-5-2 overall and 8-2-2 in league play. The Lasers will face 6th seeded St. Joseph College (Conn.) on Sunday, November 1st at 1:00 p.m. in the quarterfinals of the GNAC tournament. The first round contest will be held on Taylor Field.