VESTAL, N.Y. - The Binghamton University women's lacrosse team outscored Bucknell in the second half, but were hurt by a tough start in a 16-9 defeat at the hands of the Bison Wednesday afternoon. The Bearcats trailed 11-3 at the break and rattled off four straight goals to get back in it at 11-7, but eventually fell short in their 2020 season opener.

"We knew today was going to be a challenge in terms of it being our first game of the season and we expected to have to work out some kinks, head coach Stephanie Allen said. "Our first half execution put us in a position that was going to be difficult to overcome. I'm very proud of our players for making the adjustments we asked of them in the second half and continuing to fight. It showed a lot of resiliency and this is only the start of our journey this season."
 
Junior Paige Volkmann scored four goals and added an assist to lead the squad, with sophomore Emily Masera (who notched the first goal of the season) right behind her with three goals and an assist. Freshman Isabella Meli and senior Alissa Franze contributed a goal apiece.

To open the first half, Masera opened the scoring with an unassisted goal to give Binghamton a 1-0 edge, but Bucknell answered with three straight of their own. Volkmann netted her first of the season to make it 3-2 before the Bison scored eight of the final nine goals of the half. Meli was able to stem the tide with the first goal of her career with 4:56 remaining in the period.

Binghamton came out with a flurry of second half goals, starting with two straight by Masera. Volkman added two more to make it 11-7, but three straight goals by the Bison over the middle portion of the half put this one out of reach. Volkmann and Franze scored in the final minutes to round out the scoring on the day.

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The Bearcats will head to the Carrier Dome for a Sunday night matchup with Syracuse. Opening draw is set for 8 p.m.