Recap: North scores 5 goals as Team Moreno defeats Team Apuzzo, 9-8

The Week Three installment was no exception with Team Moreno rallying for a 9-6 victory in the final game of the weekend at USA Lacrosse Headquarters.

Attacker Charlotte North ignited the charge with five goals, including a two-pointer, to secure MVP 1 distinction. The former Boston College standout, who notched her second career five-goal performance, finished the afternoon with 180 leaderboard points.

Midfielder Ally Kennedy also played a key role in the comeback victory with two goals, two ground balls and three draw controls to garner MVP 2 notice and claim 145 leaderboard points.

Defender Caroline Wakefield anchored the defensive effort for Team Moreno to receive MVP 3 honors. Wakefield set an Athletes Unlimited single-game record with nine ground balls while adding three caused turnovers and a draw control for 140 leaderboard points.

Moreno notched 14 saves in the victory, including eight stops in the first half, to earn 145 leaderboard points.

Attacker Sam Geiersbach and midfielder Ally Mastroianni each scored twice in the loss for Team Apuzzo, while midfielder Dempsey Arsenault added a goal with an assist.

KEY MOMENT

Trailing by a 6-5 count to begin the final period, Team Moreno netted the final four points of the game to secure the victory. North got the rally started with a two-point goal with 7:06 remaining before Kennedy scored back-to-back goals in a three-minute span to give Team Moreno a three-point advantage.

LEADERBOARD IMPACT

The win allowed Moreno to sprint back ahead of Apuzzo for the league lead with 1,301 points heading into the final week of the season. Apuzzo remains in second place with 1,241 points, while goalkeeper Kady Glynn and rookie defender Abby Bosco hold steady in third and fourth places, respectively.

GAME NOTES

• Team Bosco and Team Glynn combined to record three assists in Sunday’s first game, upping the league’s season total to 112 assists through 18 games … Aspiration is committed to planting 10 trees for every assist this season as part of its ‘Aspiration Assists’ initiative.

• Team Moreno outshot Team Apuzzo by a slim 29-28 margin, but Team Apuzzo held an 11-7 edge in draw controls.

• Moreno and Apuzzo met as captains for the sixth consecutive week, including the fifth straight time in a week’s final game … Moreno snapped a four-game skid against Apuzzo, but still trails in the series by a 4-2 count.

• North joins attacker Kylie Ohlmiller as the only players in Athletes Unlimited Lacrosse history with multiple five-goal games in their career … North and Ohlmiller have each posted a pair of five-goal efforts.

• Apuzzo did not score a goal for just the second time in her 36-game Athletes Unlimited career … She did register an assist in the loss, giving her a point in every game of her career.

• Kennedy now owns 15 multi-goal games in her Athletes Unlimited career, including four this season.

• Mastroianni now has eight career multi-goal games, while Geiersbach has scored two or more goals in a game 13 times in her two Athletes Unlimited seasons.

• Moreno recorded 10 or more saves for the 16th time in her 21-game career, extending her own league record.

GAME MVPS

• #1 – Charlotte North (Team Moreno, +45)
• #2 – Ally Kennedy (Team Moreno, +30)
• #3 – Caroline Wakefield (Team Moreno, +15)