MELBOURNE, Fla. (Mar. 12, 2016) - Freshman midfielder Ryan McKinney (Downingtown, Pa.) notched two of her game-high-tying three goals in the first half Saturday to propel the No. 5/9 LIU Post women's lacrosse team to a 7-5 win over fourth-ranked University of New Haven at Panther Stadium.

In addition to McKinney's two opening-half tallies, senior attacker Emily Delaney (Long Valley, N.J.) and junior attacker Stefani Vagelatos (Port Jefferson Station, N.Y.) scored 55 seconds apart, helping the Pioneers (3-1) to a 4-1 advantage at the break.

New Haven (2-1) got back-to-back free-position goals from Corinne Fisher (Jackson, N.J.) to open the second half, closing the gap to 4-3 with 26:43 remaining.

That was as close as the Chargers got though, as the Pioneers had an answer for every goal their opposition scored for the remainder of the contest.

LIU Post was relentless on defense in the final minutes, holding New Haven without a shot and forcing four Charger turnovers in the last eight minutes of regulation.

Delaney had a goal and two assists for three points in the victory. Vagelatos added a goal and an assist. Junior defender/midfielder Cara Douglas (West Islip, N.Y.) tallied a goal, while amassing four ground balls, four caused turnovers and two draw controls.

Between the pipes, sophomore goalie Olivia Kirk (Farmingdale, N.Y.) made a game-, season- and career-best 12 saves for the Pioneers, who owned a 10-4 edge in draws and were 8-of-9 (88.9 percent) on clears.

Head Coach Meghan McNamara and her LIU Post squad return to action Wednesday (Mar. 16), when they visit Philadelphia University for a 4 p.m. opening draw in Philadelphia, Pa.