In the Southern Division of the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC), there has been fierce competition between Chestnut Hill College and Holy Family University in a number of sports.

This was evident at CHC’s Victory Field in Lafayette Hill on April 1, when a lacrosse showdown between the host Griffins and the Holy Family Tigers got underway at high noon.

Holy Family got out to a 2-0 advantage and would stay ahead for most of the game, leading by as many as five goals. The Griffins never quit, though, rallying to tie the match late in regulation play and then winning in overtime, 11-10.

Chestnut Hill received a game-high five goals from sophomore Kendall Gayton, out of Villa Joseph Marie, a member of the same scholastic league as Mount St. Joseph Academy. The Griffins received single goals from six other players, including pivotal points from two freshmen. Bryce Westervelt tied the match at 10-10 with less than 90 seconds left in the fourth quarter, and fellow rookie Samantha Martin scored the sudden-victory game-winner with 1:54 remaining in the overtime session.

CHC goalie Mel Amador secured the win with 15 saves, and in the process she set a new career saves record for the Chestnut Hill program, with 594 stops. Amador was a member of the Griffins’ coaching staff last season, but as a graduate student this year with playing eligibility left, she stepped back onto the field this spring.

It was the first CACC victory of 2026 for the Griffins, who are now in their second season under head coach Liz Martin. They improved to 1-2 in conference play and 5-3 overall. It was the first CACC loss for Holy Family, which slipped to 2-1 and leveled off at 3-3 overall.

The Tigers went ahead early, scoring twice in just over two-and-a-half minutes. Awarded a free position on the left side, CHC’s Gayton made good on the opportunity by putting in a bounce shot to get her team on the board with 7:35 remaining in the first period. Holy Family’s Taina Harkins then scored her second goal of the afternoon for a 3-1 Tigers lead at the quarter.

This was the first in a series of three goal for the visitors, who went up 5-1 (the largest lead of the half) with 3:35 left to play in the second quarter. The Griffins, however, improved their position before the intermission arrived, trailing 5-3 at the break thanks to two more strikes by Gayton. The first was assisted by Gen Washington-Vasquez, a freshman out of AIM Academy.

Throughout the game, the tweeting of the birds on this warm spring afternoon was drowned out by the tweeting of the officials, who sounded their whistles for a total of 16 penalties in the match.

Holy Family overwhelmed the Griffins in the third quarter, outscoring them 4-1 during the first 10-and-a-half minutes. The Tigers were now sitting on the largest lead of the game (9-4), with the only bright spot for Chestnut Hill coming on an unassisted goal by junior Nicole George.

Late in the third round, though, the Griffins took advantage of a Tigers penalty to deposit their fifth goal, with Ryley Geary scoring off an assist from fellow freshman Molly Miller.

As the game moved into the fourth quarter with the visitors up 9-5, the Griffins were finally able to generate some offensive momentum of their own. Driving in from the right flank a little over two minutes into the fourth quarter, Gayton fired the first shot in a three-goal burst for the host team.

Tigers goalie Haydee Guzman then foiled a free position attempt by CHC, but the Griffins scooped up the rebound and a little later freshman Carlee O’Donnell scored off a feed from Geary with 10:46 remaining.

The visitors launched an attack at the other end of the field, but Amador made saves on one shot in transition and another off the set offense.

Back on the attack, Chestnut Hill had Miller weave through the Tiger defense to the right of the cage to score. It was now 9-8 with 7:20 on the clock, and Holy Family called time out.

Four-and-a-half minutes later, with a CHC player in the penalty box, Holy Family went up 10-8 on a goal by Morgan Wise.

It became a one-goal game once more with under three minutes to go, when Gayton moved laterally from left to right and scored with a sidearm shot. After capturing the subsequent draw, the Griffins called time out with 2:46 remaining. With the clock down to 1:26, Westervelt netted the tying goal for the Griffins off of a feed from behind the cage by Geary.

After the Tigers’ Guzman made a save on a shot by CHC’s Martin, the game went into overtime at 10-10.

The standard OT period is six minutes long, with the teams changing ends halfway through. Once three minutes went by with no goal, there was a direction change and another center draw. Holy Family controlled it, but then turned the ball over.

Passing the ball from the left side of the circle to the right, Geary earned her fourth assist of the day as Martin put in the game-winning goal with 1:54 left in overtime.