Elizabeth Walsh recorded five saves in her first career shutout, as the St. Lawrence University field hockey team began their 2025 season on a winning note, downing SUNY Oneonta 3-0 Friday afternoon at Hall-Leet Stadium in the North Country Invitational's opening game.

The Saints received goals from Sydney LeClair, Caroline Hamilton, and Charlotte Lehr added their first tallies of the season.

"This was a great team effort, where all our group's hard work in the offseason and preseason came to fruition with a very nicely played game," said Saints head coach Fran Grembowicz. "We played connected between the defensive, middle and attack lines. Bitsy (Elizabeth Walsh) did a good job and we came up with some good defensive clears. I'm really proud of our effort and am looking forward to Sunday's game."

The Saints got on the board after a scoreless opening frame, capitalizing on some sustained second-quarter pressure. At 21:58, LeClair pounced on a loose ball in the shooting circle and launched a turnaround shot past Oneonta goalkeeper Maura Leib to break the ice and open the scoring.

Shortly thereafter, the Saints made the score 2-0. Just over three minutes later, Hamilton had speed cutting down the middle, and one-touched a shot into the back of the net. Hamilton, who had a team-high 11 goals last year for seventh in the Liberty League, is off to a quick start this season.

The Scarlet and Brown added a third tally from Lehr, who rammed home a shot off a penalty corner. Maja Helmer took the original shot, then Lehr was able to send the rebound to the back of the net and make the Saints' lead three. They held on to preserve the shutout.



The Saints began their season with a victory for the first time since 2021, when they beat SUNY Morrisville 6-0 and ultimately finished the season 11-7. Walsh's shutout came with four saves. St. Lawrence directed 21 shots toward the Red Dragon net, forcing the keeper to make 18 saves. They outshot Oneonta 25-8 and had the penalty corner advantage 11-7.

St. Lawrence will now recover Saturday before re-taking the brand new turf at Hall-Leet Stadium on Sunday to play against the Utica Pioneers at 2 p.m.