MISENHEIMER, N.C. –  Saint Leo held onto a 2-1 lead early in the game, but the Pfeiffer University Falcons battled back to defeat the Lions 19-4 on a cold and snowy morning at N.E. Lefko Field in Misenheimer, N.C.  The loss drops the Lions to a record of 0-3, while Pfeiffer, who received votes on the latest IWLCA DII Coaches Poll, stays perfect on their young season and advances their mark to 4-0.

Putting goals on the scoreboard for Saint Leo were Paige Leggio, Alix Murray, Stephanie Marran, and Cassie Miller.  Alyssa Viscomi, Lauren Irish, and Allie Sheftall dished out assists on the day.

Brittany Millsap and Nicole Sirota Plotnikov saw time between the pipes for the Green and Gold.  Millsap set aside four shots in the opening 22 minutes, while Sirota-Plotnikov closed out the remainder of the game with five saves while allowing only six goals in 38 minutes of play.

Leading the game in goals were Pfeiffer's Shannon Bonnel and Sarah Daly, with four apiece.  A total of 10 Falcons contributed to the scoring efforts on the day, with Daly leading the team in overall points as she tallied three assists to her four goal performance.

Pfieffer got the game started with a goal from Daly three minutes into the contest, but Marran answered back 34 seconds later to knot the score at 1-1 with 26:25 on the clock.  The Lions pulled ahead three minutes later, with Sheftall connecting a pass to Miller for a shot into the back of the net, giving Saint Leo a 2-1 advantage with 23:20 to go in the first half.

The Falcons were not about to back down, and rattled off five straight to gain a four goal advantage, 6-2, with 17:51 left in the first period.  Irish found Leggio at the 16:21 mark to break the Falcon scoring streak, pulling Saint Leo to within three, 6-3, but Pfeiffer closed out the first half with eight unanswered goals to set the score at 14-3 at the half.  The Falcons then went on to out-score Saint Leo 5-1 in the final 30 minutes of action for a final score of 19-4.

Saint Leo trailed on the shot count 35-11, as well as in the ground ball battle, 20-16.  The Lions were successful on 12-of-16 clear attempts, and led the game in saves, 9-5.  Saint Leo came up with eight draw controls, led by Miller with two.

The Lions return to action on Monday, March 4, when they take on Queens University of Charlotte in Charlotte, N.C.  Game time is slated for noon.   Fans who cannot make it to the game can catch all of the action live on the Saint Leo Sports Network at SaintLeoLions.com.   For the latest news, updates, and information, fans can 'Like' the Lions on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.