Saturday, April 12
Lynchburg, Va.
11:00 AM ET
Liberty University
10-5 (5-0)
22
vs
18
Kennesaw State
5-10 (0-5)
1
2
3
4
F
KENNESAW STATE
2
5
5
6
18
LIBERTY
4
7
6
5
22
Colavito Stars as Liberty Topples Kennesaw State 22-18 on Senior Day
4/12/2025 4:44:00 PM | Women's Lacrosse
LYNCHBURG, Va. – Katie Colavito shined all over the field, lifting the Lady Flames (10-5, 5-0 ASUN) to a 22-18 triumph at home over Kennesaw State (5-10, 0-5 ASUN) on Saturday afternoon. The midfielder tallied a team-high eight points with five goals and three assists along with causing four turnovers, earning five ground balls and winning three draw controls.
Liberty held a pre-game Senior Day ceremony to recognize ten of its student-athletes. The Lady Flames had all seniors either start or receive playing time later in the contest.
The Lady Flames jumped ahead to a 4-1 lead, kicked off by senior Celena Kerr. The two teams traded goals for the next 10 minutes with the score 6-4 at the 10:59 mark of the second quarter. Both squads earned back-to-back goals with Liberty leading 8-6 with 7:17 remaining in the half.
After a stretch of five scoreless minutes, both teams combined for 10 goals, favoring Liberty 8-2, over the next seven minutes of play. Following four straight Lady Flames goals in the third quarter, the Lady Flames' lead ballooned to 16-8 with 11:10 remaining in the third quarter.
The Owls responded with four unanswered goals of their own, holding Liberty scoreless for over 10 minutes of play. Senior Cami Merkel (4g, 1a) scored with :03 left in the frame to end the scoring drought with a 17-12 Liberty lead.
After Kennesaw State opened the quarter, both teams traded stretches of four straight goals. Liberty's scoring run was capped off with a highlight reel, behind-the-back score to push the lead to 21-13. Senior Mackenzie Lehman (four goals) capped the scoring for the Lady Flames before the Owls tallied the final score of the contest to finish 22-18.
Liberty seniors combined for 11 goals and two assists with both senior goalkeepers, Taylor Gallarello (30 minutes) and Mara Tellers (15 minutes) getting time in the crease.
The Owls' Alyssa Angelo finished with a game-high nine points with five goals and a game-high four assists.
In her last two games against Kennesaw State, Colavito has totaled 11 goals and three assists (14 points) facing the Owls. The Lady Flames remain perfect against the Owls with an 8-0 record all-time.
The Lady Flames continue its unbeaten season in Atlantic Sun play with a 5-0 record. Liberty has a single ASUN matchup remaining at Jacksonville (8-5, 4-0 ASUN) on April 26.
Liberty Goals: Katie Colavito 5; Cami Merkel 4; Mackenzie Lehman 4; Olivia Young 3; Kendall Coss 2; Taiva Reinertson 1; Ava Rajala 1; Celena Kerr 1; Brooke Beard 1
Liberty Assists: Katie Colavito 3; Kendall Coss 1; Cami Merkel 1; Ava Rajala 1; Taiva Reinertson 1
Kennesaw State Goals: Alyssa Angelo 5; Shannon Harrington 4; Lexi Tinker 3; Lavona Watkins 3; Marleigh Belinfanti 1; Sydney Bumstead 1; Cohen Ridenour 1
Kennesaw State Assists: Alyssa Angelo 4
Liberty Goalkeepers: W – Taylor Gallarello (1-0, five saves, seven goals, 30:00)
Mara Tellers (two saves, five goals, 15:00)
Rachel Hines (one save, six goals, 15:00)
Kennesaw State Goals: L – Mia Nardi (1-4, six saves, 16 goals, 33:50)
Roxy Surridge (two saves, four goals, 17:10)
Natalia Cruz (one save, two goals, 9:00)
Turning Point
Both teams were answering goal for goal in the second quarter as each side netted four goals in the first 8:00 of the frame with Liberty leading 8-6. Colavito netted a free-position goal at the 1:39 mark but was answered less than a minute later by the Owls' Lavona Watkins at the 0:49 mark. With the remaining time in the half less than a minute, the Lady Flames sparked for two goals from Colavito (0:32) and Lehman (0:22) to push the lead to 11-7 entering the second half.
Liberty's Kendall Coss opened the half with an eight-meter tally (13:58), but Kennesaw State responded less than a minute later from a free-position score from Lexi Tinker (13:21). The Lady Flames erupted four consecutive goals over the next two minutes of action. Lehman began the run (12:21), followed by Olivia Young's (three goals) first of the stretch (12:00), senior Ava Rajala (1g, 1a) added a tally (11:31) before Young concluded the outburst at the 11:10 mark. The Lady Flames carried the 16-8 lead to the victory with the margin getting no closer than four goals.
First Half Summary
Second Half Summary
Lady Flames News & Notes
Up Next
Liberty (10-5) gets set for its third matchup in the span of a week, heading up the road to take on No. 14 James Madison (9-4) on Wednesday at 6 p.m. The meeting will be streamed live on ESPN+ from Sentara Park.
Liberty held a pre-game Senior Day ceremony to recognize ten of its student-athletes. The Lady Flames had all seniors either start or receive playing time later in the contest.
The Lady Flames jumped ahead to a 4-1 lead, kicked off by senior Celena Kerr. The two teams traded goals for the next 10 minutes with the score 6-4 at the 10:59 mark of the second quarter. Both squads earned back-to-back goals with Liberty leading 8-6 with 7:17 remaining in the half.
After a stretch of five scoreless minutes, both teams combined for 10 goals, favoring Liberty 8-2, over the next seven minutes of play. Following four straight Lady Flames goals in the third quarter, the Lady Flames' lead ballooned to 16-8 with 11:10 remaining in the third quarter.
The Owls responded with four unanswered goals of their own, holding Liberty scoreless for over 10 minutes of play. Senior Cami Merkel (4g, 1a) scored with :03 left in the frame to end the scoring drought with a 17-12 Liberty lead.
After Kennesaw State opened the quarter, both teams traded stretches of four straight goals. Liberty's scoring run was capped off with a highlight reel, behind-the-back score to push the lead to 21-13. Senior Mackenzie Lehman (four goals) capped the scoring for the Lady Flames before the Owls tallied the final score of the contest to finish 22-18.
Liberty seniors combined for 11 goals and two assists with both senior goalkeepers, Taylor Gallarello (30 minutes) and Mara Tellers (15 minutes) getting time in the crease.
The Owls' Alyssa Angelo finished with a game-high nine points with five goals and a game-high four assists.
In her last two games against Kennesaw State, Colavito has totaled 11 goals and three assists (14 points) facing the Owls. The Lady Flames remain perfect against the Owls with an 8-0 record all-time.
The Lady Flames continue its unbeaten season in Atlantic Sun play with a 5-0 record. Liberty has a single ASUN matchup remaining at Jacksonville (8-5, 4-0 ASUN) on April 26.
Spanky Special with the BTB ??
— Liberty Lacrosse (@LibertyWLAX) April 12, 2025
Liberty 21 - Kennesaw 13 pic.twitter.com/yFXzMo2fRj
Liberty Goals: Katie Colavito 5; Cami Merkel 4; Mackenzie Lehman 4; Olivia Young 3; Kendall Coss 2; Taiva Reinertson 1; Ava Rajala 1; Celena Kerr 1; Brooke Beard 1
Liberty Assists: Katie Colavito 3; Kendall Coss 1; Cami Merkel 1; Ava Rajala 1; Taiva Reinertson 1
Kennesaw State Goals: Alyssa Angelo 5; Shannon Harrington 4; Lexi Tinker 3; Lavona Watkins 3; Marleigh Belinfanti 1; Sydney Bumstead 1; Cohen Ridenour 1
Kennesaw State Assists: Alyssa Angelo 4
Liberty Goalkeepers: W – Taylor Gallarello (1-0, five saves, seven goals, 30:00)
Mara Tellers (two saves, five goals, 15:00)
Rachel Hines (one save, six goals, 15:00)
Kennesaw State Goals: L – Mia Nardi (1-4, six saves, 16 goals, 33:50)
Roxy Surridge (two saves, four goals, 17:10)
Natalia Cruz (one save, two goals, 9:00)
Turning Point
Both teams were answering goal for goal in the second quarter as each side netted four goals in the first 8:00 of the frame with Liberty leading 8-6. Colavito netted a free-position goal at the 1:39 mark but was answered less than a minute later by the Owls' Lavona Watkins at the 0:49 mark. With the remaining time in the half less than a minute, the Lady Flames sparked for two goals from Colavito (0:32) and Lehman (0:22) to push the lead to 11-7 entering the second half.
Liberty's Kendall Coss opened the half with an eight-meter tally (13:58), but Kennesaw State responded less than a minute later from a free-position score from Lexi Tinker (13:21). The Lady Flames erupted four consecutive goals over the next two minutes of action. Lehman began the run (12:21), followed by Olivia Young's (three goals) first of the stretch (12:00), senior Ava Rajala (1g, 1a) added a tally (11:31) before Young concluded the outburst at the 11:10 mark. The Lady Flames carried the 16-8 lead to the victory with the margin getting no closer than four goals.
First Half Summary
- Liberty outscored Kennesaw State 11-7 with the help of a 24-14 edge in shots (17-10 shots on goal).
- The Lady Flames outdrew the Owls 13-7 including eight draws from Ava Menna.
- Both teams netted two free-position goals in the opening half with Liberty 2-of-3 and KSU 2-of-2.
- The Lady Flames held a 14-10 edge in caused turnovers with the Owls losing possession 16 times.
Second Half Summary
- Both teams scored 11 goals in the second half with Liberty holding a 22-19 advantage in shots.
- Liberty turned the ball over 13 times to 11 from Kennesaw in the final 30 minutes.
- The Lady Flames netted 6-of-8 free-position attempts in the second half while Kennesaw State went 4-of-5.
- Liberty outdrew Kennesaw 14-10 in the second half with Ava Menna earning another eight in the half.
Lady Flames News & Notes
- The Lady Flames outshot the Owls 46-33 and 31-26 in shots on goal.
- Just four free-position attempts were unsuccessful with Liberty going 8-of-11 and Kennesaw State at a 6-of-7 clip.
- Liberty outdrew Kennesaw State 27-17. Ava Menna earned a game-high 16 draw controls. Saturday marked her sixth game with at least 10 draws.
- The Lady Flames continued to pile on caused turnovers with a 23-21 edge in the category. Five Lady Flames recorded multiple caused turnovers.
- The Owls held a 28-27 advantage in ground balls with Colavito sharing a game-high five ground balls.
- At the conclusion of the game, Lehman (four goals) entered a tie with Senior Taiva Reinertson (1g, 1a) for the team lead with 45 goals. Reinertson still holds the squad lead with 59 points.
Up Next
Liberty (10-5) gets set for its third matchup in the span of a week, heading up the road to take on No. 14 James Madison (9-4) on Wednesday at 6 p.m. The meeting will be streamed live on ESPN+ from Sentara Park.
Team Stats
KSU
LIBERTY
Shots
33
46
Turnovers
27
28
Caused Turnovers
21
23
Draw Controls
17
27
Free-Position Shots
7
11
Ground Balls
28
27
Game Leaders
G
5
A
3
FO
-
Pen
-
GB
5
CT
4
G
4
A
1
FO
-
Pen
-
GB
0
CT
0
G
4
A
0
FO
-
Pen
-
GB
4
CT
4
G
3
A
0
FO
-
Pen
-
GB
1
CT
0
Players Mentioned
A
/ Women's LacrosseM
/ Women's Lacrosse
M
/ Women's Lacrosse
GK
/ Women's Lacrosse
GK
/ Women's Lacrosse
M
/ Women's LacrosseA
/ Women's Lacrosse
A
/ Women's Lacrosse
A
/ Women's Lacrosse
A
/ Women's Lacrosse
GK
/ Women's LacrosseM
/ Women's LacrosseLiberty Lacrosse: Giving Hope to a New Teammate
Tuesday, June 03
Coach Nangle Talks About Preparing For The NCAA WLAX Tournament
Tuesday, May 06
Mackenzie Lehman & Katie Colavito Talk About Preparing For The NCAA WLAX Tournament
Tuesday, May 06
Coach Nangle & Mackenzie Lehman Talk About Winning The ASUN Tournament
Saturday, May 03