NEWTON, Mass. – The Lasell University field hockey team dropped a 3-0 decision Saturday afternoon at Elms College in a key Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) contest at Leary Field.

With one game remaining in the regular season, both teams now have a 6-4 GNAC record and are tied for fifth place. Elms improves 7-8 overall while Lasell drops to 7-9. The GNAC playoffs begin next Saturday, October 30, at the sites of the top four teams.

Grad student Carissa Ramirez (San Diego, Calif.) led the Blazers with a goal and two assists, while seniors Ellie Serra (Palmer, Mass.) and Erin Thibodeau (East Longmeadow, Mass.) scored once each. Elms had a 23-7 advantage in shots and a 14-7 margin in penalty corners.

Serra put the Blazers on the board in the 13th minute, with an assist from Ramirez. The score stayed 1-0 until halftime, but Ramirez pushed the Elms lead to 2-0 a minute into the third quarter. Then Elms sealed the win when Ramirez set up Thibodeau for a fourth-quarter strike.

Freshman Courtney Tello (Nashua, N.H.) made seven saves in the Lasell goal, and senior Nora Newman (Woburn, Mass.) made one save in the win for Elms.

Lasell wraps up the regular season this Wednesday with a 3 p.m. contest at Grellier Field against GNAC-leading Colby-Sawyer College (13-3, 9-1 GNAC). Elms winds up the regular season Tuesday at Rivier University (6-7, 5-4 GNAC).

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