SAINT LEO, Fla. - Maria Palomba tied and then broke a Sunshine State Conference career record on Thursday evening as the eighth-ranked Saint Leo University women's lacrosse team earned a 15-12 win over #15 Seton Hill. Palomba set a new record for all-time career draw controls in SSC history with her second draw control on the night. The senior finished the night with five draw controls to push the SSC record to 444 after breaking Florida Southern alumnae Dani Bursinger's (2016-20) record. The Lions improved to 7-1 on the season while the Griffins fall to 3-2. Saint Leo extended its win streak to three as four recorded hat tricks in the victory.
 
Offensively, the Lions were led by Palomba (5) and Storm (4) as the duo combined for nine of Saint Leo's 15 goals. Nuss and Jones scored three goals each. Hill scored a goal and had a pair of assists. Senior Ava Valenti also had a pair of assists in the win. Palomba won a team-high five draws, while two other Lions won multiple draws.

Defensively, the Green & Gold were led by Senior Emma Hayhurst who picked up three groundballs and caused two turnovers. Sophomore Abby Richards and Storm each picked up two groundballs and caused three turnovers. In net, junior Jessica Harclerode made 10 saves and had five groundballs as she earned her seventh win of the season.
 
#8 SAINT LEO 15, #15 SETON HILL 12
The visiting Griffins opened the game on a 2-0 run over the first eight minutes of the game. Saint Leo followed with a 3-0 run to take a lead it never relinquished as Josey Storm, Jana Nuss and Palomba found the back of the net. Nuss and Palomba quickly turned a 3-1 deficit into a 3-2 advantage scoring just 18 seconds apart. Seton Hill quickly responded to tie the game at three, 55 seconds later. Palomba took advantage of a woman-up opportunity with her second goal of the game late in the opening quarter as the Lions took a 4-3 lead into the second quarter.
 
Sophomore Natalie Jones wasted no time opening the scoring in the second quarter with back-to-back goals netting her 11th and 12th goals of the season. Seton Hill ended its scoreless drought with its first of two goals in the second quarter. Palomba, Nuss, and Storm's 3-0 run gave the Lions a five-goal advantage. Following Storm's goal, Palomba won the ensuing draw for her record-breaking draw, number 440 of her career, passing the previous record of 439, set by Dani Bursinger of Florida Southern (2016-20). Both teams traded goals as the quarter went on, with Saint Leo maintaining a five-goal lead.
 
Storm found the back of the net for the third time on the evening 45 seconds into the second half, before the visiting Griffins responded just over a minute later. Junior Holly Hill scored the 12th goal of the night for the home team before the game went scoreless for roughly seven minutes of the third quarter. Both sides traded goals late in the quarter, with Palomba netting her fourth goal of the night, which proved to be the game-winning goal.
 
On a woman-up chance, Jones netted her third goal of the night early in the fourth quarter, becoming the fourth Lion to record a hat-trick on the evening. The Griffins got into a grove as they went on a 3-0 run to cut the Lions lead to four as the game entered its final ten minutes. With 2:20 remaining in the contest, Storm scored her fourth goal of the night to restore the five-goal lead. Seton Hill refused to go down without a fight, netting two quick goals to get within three as the game entered the final minute of play. However, it was too little, too late, as Saint Leo held off the Griffins to remain unbeaten at home this season.
 
UP NEXT
Saint Leo's homestand continues on Sunday, March 16, as it hosts #12 Kutztown for a non-conference match starting at 11 a.m. at University Turf Stadium.