NEW LONDON, Conn. –

Hosting the NEWMAC quarterfinal as the number two seed, Coast Guard defeated number seven Salve Regina in a rematch of Wednesday night. The Seahawks finish their 2026 campaign with an 8-9 record.

The game this afternoon started much like it did on Wednesday, with Salve controlling the pace and keeping the Bears in check. In a low scoring quarter, The Seahawks scored the first two goals to take 2-0 lead under the six minute mark in the first. The Bears' answer came when Rileigh Leary (Holden, MA) found Elizabeth Pearcy (Philadelphia, PA) for a goal. Pearcy had a big day off the bench for the Bears adding two assists with her goal along with a team leading four ground balls. One of those assists came just two minutes after her goal when she assisted on the Hannah Warnke (Lincoln, NE) game tying goal. The two goals a piece were all the scoring that was done in the first quarter.

The second was equally as low scoring as the first but this time the Bears out-scored Salve 3-1. Rookie of the Year candidate Joely Schaumloffel (Remsenburg, NY) broke through to give the Bears their first lead of the afternoon on an assist from Rileigh Leary. They extended that lead to two goals with Pearcy staying red hot with a nifty assist to senior Isabella Judge (Buffalo, NY). After Madison Maire scored her second goal for the Seahawks, Abby McAllister (Pleasantville, NY) found the net for the first time in the day with a free-position shot. McAllister was the focal point of the Salve defense all day, seeing herself doubled and sometimes triple teamed throughout the action.

Out of the half, Coast Guard made their run and delivered the dagger. The third quarter saw four Coast Guard goals and none from Salve. The incredible Bears defense forced 11 turnovers in the quarter and did not allow a single shot. On the game, senior captain Rowan Walsh (Hampstead, MD) led all Bears with three caused turnovers, but the team effort on defense with seven behind her, each with two including fellow defenders Gabriella Kraus-Rivera (West Linn, OR), Ella Campbell (Foxborough, MA), Lauren Henry (Monroe, CT), and Lane Donahoe (Annapolis, MD). While not recording an official CT, junior defender Cate Yurko (Oakton, VA) was a wall for the Bears, showing her toughness and giving a dominant effort in contribution to the CGA masterclass in front of their crease. 

The four third quarter goals that sealed the deal for the Bears came from Joely Schaumloffel (x2), Taylor Thorne (Edgewater, MD), and Isabella Judge. For Thorne and Judge, each of their goals were assisted by a classmate, the freshman Thorne by fellow 4/c Joely Schaumloffel and senior Judge by 1/c Abby McAllister.

Despite scoring twice in the fourth, the six goal lead proved too much to overcome for Salve Regina with a 12-5 final to give the Bears a home date in the NEWMAC tournament semifinals.

Coast Guard edged out Salve in the draw control battle (12-5) with Taylor Thorne and Ella Campbell combining for 10. In goal, it was two completely different stories despite both keepers playing great games. Seahawks keeper Mary Flynn Kayajan was peppered all game long, making 11 saves, the 10th time this season the sophomore has made double digit saves. Kailee Heron (West Islip, NY) in turn only had to make two saves thanks to her wall of a defense in front of her. One of those saves however, came in impressive fashion just two minutes into the action to set the tone for the whole game. Heron would also cause a turnover and come up with three ground balls. Tied with Heron behind Elizabeth Pearcy for second in ground balls were two defenders: Ella Campbell and Rowan Walsh. For Walsh, the three GBs meant history, as now Rowan joins the exclusive 100 ground ball club at CGA as just the 5th ever to do so.

With the win, Coast Guard improves to their already record-breaking season, now at 13-2. The #2 Bears will host #3 Springfield College on Wednesday April 29th at 6:00 PM for a chance at the NEWMAC title game. Springfield College advanced to the semifinal with a 15-5 win over Wheaton College today. Earlier this season when they played, Coast Guard defeated Springfield by a score of 11-6.