SYRACUSE, N.Y. - Senior midfielder Liz Hewitt (Liverpool, N.Y./Liverpool) scored six goals to lead Le Moyne to a 20-12 win over Canisius in a Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference women's lacrosse game at the Thomas J. Niland Athletic Complex. The Dolphins (12-3, 6-0 MAAC) clinch their second MAAC regular season championship in three seasons, while Canisius (10-6, 5-1 MAAC) drops its first league contest of the season.

Hewitt, the 2005 MAAC Offensive Player of the Year and 2006 Co-MAAC Preseason Player of the Year, paced eight Dolphins in the scoring column. She scored four times in the opening half as Le Moyne hopped out to a 10-6 lead. She scored the first and final goals of the half - putting the Dolphins on the board 49 seconds into the game and capping the half's scoring with 2:18 remaining. In the second half, Hewitt converted back-to-back free position attempts in the second half to turn a three-goal edge into a five-goal edge Le Moyne would not relinquish.

Seven other Dolphins scored goals. Junior Lauren Byrne (Syracuse, N.Y./Bishop Ludden) netted two in each half for four goals. Sophomore Whitney Vecchio (Watertown, N.Y./General Brown), Amanda Keegan (Marcellus, N.Y./Marcellus), Kylie Rosette (Watertown, N.Y./General Brown) and Emily Donnells (Penn Yan, N.Y./Penn Yan) added two goals each. Junior Kristen Malecki (Baldwinsville, N.Y./Baldwinsville) and McKenzie Gray (Baldwinsville, N.Y./Baldwinsville) scored once. Freshman Lisa McCarthy (Syracuse, N.Y./West Genesee) and Vecchio dished out three assists each.

Malecki turned a caused turnover in the defensive end into a goal at the offensive end to give Le Moyne an 11-6 lead, but Canisius got goals from Lauren Walsh (Auburn, N.Y./Auburn) and Ashley Gray (Baldwinsville, N.Y./Baldwinsville) to trim it to 11-8. After the two teams traded goals, Hewitt scored on back-to-back free position goals to make it 14-9 and ignite a 6-0 Le Moyne run that delivered the Dolphins a game-high nine-goal edge. Donnells capped the run on a putback with 10:22 remaining that made it 18-9.

Sophomore Whitney Card (Alton, Ont./Mayfield) led Canisius with three goals.  Alana Chan (Lakefield, Ont./Lakefield), who shared the 2006 MAAC Preseason Player of the Year honors with Hewitt, scored two goals. Walsh, Gray and Awehiyo Thomas (Six Nations, Ont./Cayuga) also netted two goals for the Golden Griffins.

Le Moyne goalkeeper Samantha Falcone (Syracuse, N.Y./West Genesee) made six of her nine saves in the second half. Rasheeda Brenton (Clarence, N.Y./Clarence) stopped 10 shots in the opening half and 13 for the game.

Le Moyne, also conference regular season champions in 2004, closes out the regular season on Sunday at Niagara. The Dolphins have equaled the program-record for wins in a season. Canisius, MAAC tournament qualifiers for the first time in program history, hosts Siena on Sunday at 11 a.m.

The four-team MAAC tournament begins April 28 at Iona.