CLINTON, N.Y.-William Smith sophomore goalie Olivia Hofmann made a career-high 17 saves as the Herons rallied to defeat Hamilton 7-6 in a non-conference contest on Withiam Field this afternoon. With its 11th straight victory, William Smith is now 13-2 overall this season.
 
Junior Nicki Santora scored twice to lead the Herons. Sophomore Ellen Arena had a game-high five ground balls and four caused turnovers. Three different players had one draw win for the Herons.
 
The Continentals (5-8) were led by Kara Pooley who had a goal and an assist. Olivia Seymour had a team-high four ground balls and three caused turnovers and Charlotte Wynn won a game-high five draws. Hannah Burrall played well in goal for Hamilton, stopping 15 shots.
 
William Smith opened the scoring just past the two minute mark of the first half when sophomore Ellie Burns converted on a free position attempt, firing a shot into the upper half of the net. It was her team-leading 45th goal of the season. The Herons doubled their lead just over a minute later when sophomore Anna Murphy bounced a free position shot past Burrall. The unassisted goal was her 19th of the season. Hamilton closed out the half on a three-goal run to take a 3-2 lead into the intermission. Charlotte Wynn converted a free position attempt with 24:19 left in the first half. Skyler Simson tied the game at two ten minutes later. Honor Gabriel was credited with an assist on the goal. With 7:48 left in the first half, Tatiana Bradley collected a pass from Seymour and bounced a shot past Hofmann.
 
The goalies stole the show in the first half. Hofmann made nine saves and Burall stopped 10 shots in the first 30 minutes.
 
The Continentals extended their lead to two goals just under seven minutes into the second half. Tessa Ryan bounced a free position shot past Hofmann. Two minutes later, Santora scored her first goal of the game. She collected a pass from senior Bizzer Gahagan and fired a shot past Burrall. The woman-up goal was her 21st tally of the season. Kara Pooley made it 5-3 Hamilton one minute later. She took the draw down the field and fired a shot past Hofmann. With 18:53 remaining in regulation, Payton McMahon bounced a free position shot for her 20th goal of the season to make it a one-goal game. Santora tied the game for William Smith with a woman-up free position goal. It was her 22nd goal of the season. Sophomore Delia Lawver gave William Smith a 6-5 lead with 10:10 remaining in regulation. The free position goal was her 11th of the season. Eva Abel tied the game 30 seconds later off a feed from Pooley. Junior Rachel Slagle scored the game winning goal with 6:07 remaining in regulation. She deked around a defender and fired a shot past Burrall into the upper corner of the net. It was her 12th goal of the season.
 
The teams were evenly matched on the stat sheet. Each team had 26 shots. Hamilton had a slight 24-23 edge in ground balls. The Continentals dominated the draw circle, winning 12 of the 15 draws. William Smith was 23-of-32 clearing the ball and Hamilton was 20-of-22.
 
The Herons return to Boswell Field at David J Urick Stadium Saturday, April 20. William Smith will take on Rochester in a Liberty League Contest. Opening draw is scheduled for 3 p.m.