Fitchburg State Holds Off Western Connecticut State, 1-0
| Final | 1 | 2 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Western Conn. St. (6-8, 2-6 LEC) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
|
Fitchburg St. (7-8, 2-7 LEC) | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Hoffman and Linane lead Falcons to LEC victory
FITCHBURG, Mass. – Junior forward Madeline Hoffman scored the game winning goal in the 62nd minute of action to propel the Fitchburg State field hockey team to a 1-0 win over the visiting Colonials of Western Connecticut State in Little East Conference (LEC) action in evening at Elliot Field.
In the opening 35 minutes of play, neither team was able to find the back of the cage as freshman Brittany Linane finished with three first half saves for the Falcons, while junior Kristy Trotta turned away seven shots for Western Connecticut.
Fitchburg State's best scoring chance occurred in the 28th minute of play as sophomore Kerra Anastasia and junior Nicole Fors fired back-to-back shots on frame, but Trotta turned away both shots, while the sophomore Aatoshi Chokshi put a pair of shots on goal for the Colonials best offensive opportunity only to have Linana deny both shots to preserve the 0-0 stalemate going into the break.
Following Intermission, Fitchburg State broke the 0-0 deadlock at the 61:21 mark when Hoffman received a feed from sophomore Casey Noonan and blasted a shot into the upper left corner for her seventh goal on the season for the 1-0 lead.
The Colonials nearly knotted the score with just under five minutes remaining in regulation as sophomores Caitlin Ogrizovich and Greg McConnell had quality scoring chance, but Linane was up to the task, stopping both shots, resulting in the 1-0 final.
Throughout the match, both team finished with 16 shots each, while Western Connecticut State held an 11-6 advantage in penalty corners. In the cage, Linane registered seven saves for the Falcons en-route to earning her first collegiate win, while Trotta was equally impressive, turning away 12 shots for the Colonials in the complete game effort.
Fitchburg State (7-8, 2-7 LEC) will be back in action on Saturday as it travels to Salem State University at 12 p.m. Western Connecticut State (5-9, 3-6 LEC) will visit Rivier University on Thursday for a contest starting at 7 p.m.