RIVER FALLS, Wis. -- All in all, not bad for the first time out.
 
That was how Ella Steinke and her teammates on the College of Saint Benedict lacrosse team were feeling after the first game in program history Monday night (March 20).
 
The Bennies took a huge and historic step, opening their first season of varsity intercollegiate competition with a 16-5 nonconference loss on the road to Wisconsin-River Falls at a cold and snow-lined Ramer Field.
 
Steinke entered her name in the record book, scoring the first goal in program history on a free position shot with 9:31 remaining in the second quarter.
 
"It felt awesome," said Steinke, a first-year midfielder who finished with two goals and an assist. "It was so much fun just playing with teammates that I've been practicing with for awhile now. I think we did pretty well. Better than I expected actually."
 


First-year defender/attacker Sami Hackley added two goals for CSB and first-year midfielder Grace Fitzgibbons finished with a goal and an assist. First-year goalkeeper Chloe Lewis recorded 19 saves.
 
"I have seven players for whom this was their first time stepping onto the field," said Bennies coach Patrick Crandall, whose team's roster includes just one junior and no seniors. "I'm really proud of how we came out here and played. You don't really know what you have when it's your first season. But to actually get our feet on the field after being in the gym for the past month-and-a-half was something really special."
 
CSB announced in October 2021 that it planned to start a varsity lacrosse program, which would begin play this spring. Soon after, the Bennies were accepted for membership in the now-eight member Midwest Women's Lacrosse Conference – joining fellow MIAC members Augsburg and Hamline as well as Northwestern (Minnesota), Cornell (Iowa), Wartburg (Iowa), Lake Forest (Illinois) and Monmouth (Illinois).
 
In December 2021, Crandall, one of the state's top prep girls coaches, was hired to lead the program. He was the head coach at Lakeville South High School from 2011 through the 2022 season. During that time, his teams twice finished as state runners-up and twice finished as state consolation champions before finally winning a state title in his final season last spring.
 
And Monday night, he led the Bennies into the first matchup in the program's history.
 
"I keep on telling this group that I really appreciate all the work they've been putting in," Crandall said. "We're not going to be where we started today at the end of the season. I'm always asking them just to make improvement each day."
 
Junior midfielders Bailey O'Donovan and Grace Hannula and senior attacker Emily Herdine led Wisconsin-River Falls (2-3) with three goals apiece.
 
The Falcons got off to a fast start, jumping out to a 6-0 lead. But Steinke got the Bennies on the board when she scored her first goal to cut the gap to five.
 
"My mom is going to be so excited," Steinke said with a smile. "That was a huge adrenaline rush."
 
CSB then got a goal from Hackley in the final seconds of the first half and went into halftime trailing 10-2. In the third quarter, CSB matched UW-River Falls with three goals each. Overall, CSB was outshot, 44-to-26, but had 19 shots on-goal. UW-River Falls had a 30-to-25 edge in ground balls and the Bennies had a 28 turnovers to 15 for the home team. However, CSB had a 13-to-12 edge in draw challenges.
 
The Bennies are scheduled to return to action when they play at Concordia (Wisconsin) in nonconference action at 3 p.m. Saturday in Mequon, Wisconsin.
 
"We learned some things we need to work on tonight," Steinke said. "We learned some places where we're better than we expected to be. It was a good learning experience for us overall."