Fitchburg State Edges Salem State, 3-2 (OT)
| Final | 1 | 2 | OT | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Fitchburg St. (3-0 (1-0)) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
|
Salem St. (2-1 (0-1)) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
Kelley notches hat trick in Falcons key LEC victory
FITCHBURG, Mass. (September 8, 2012) – Senior Jamie Kelley (Pepperell, Mass./North Middlesex) registered her first hat trick of the season as the Fitchburg State field hockey team collected a 3-2 overtime victory over Salem State in Little East Conference action this afternoon.
Fitchburg State opened the scoring at the 13:19 mark of the first period as Kelley converted a penalty corner for her first tally of the game. Sophomore Kaitlyn Silva (W. Townsend, Mass./North Middlesex) inbounded the pass to classmate Courtney Brooks (Fitchburg, Mass./Fitchburg) who slid the ball over to Kelley for the 1-0 lead.
Salem State knotted the score (1-1) in the 25th minute of play when junior Kathleen Clark (Southboro, Mass./Algonquin Regional) redirected a shot by line-mate Kelsey Russell (Arlington, Mass./Arlington) for her first goal of the season.
In the second half, Salem State took its first lead of the contest as Russell fired a shot from the right circle and found back of the cage with a helper from Clark. The Vikings controlled play throughout much of the half, but Falcon goalkeeper Lucy Holewa (Londonderry, N.H./Londonderry) turned away 12 shots to keep Fitchburg State within striking distance.
Kelley made Holewa's effort count as she notched the game tying score with just over a minute remaining in regulation, forcing a 15 minute overtime period. In the extra frame, both teams created several scoring opportunities but stellar play the collective defenses kept the game at a 2-2 standstill. Fitchburg State eventually sealed its fate just 5:42 into the period as Kelley broke free of a defender and back handed a shot past Vikings' goalie Michaela Boyer (South Hadley, Mass./South Hadley) for the victory.
Throughout the match, Salem State saw a 32-22 advantage in shots while also tallying a 17-5 margin in penalty corners. In the cage, Holewa finished the game with 20 saves, posting the complete game victory for the Falcons, while Boyer made 11 stops in the setback for the Vikings.
Fitchburg State (3-0, 1-0 LEC) will be back in action on Thursday as it travels to Nichols College at 7 p.m. Salem State (2-1, 0-1 LEC) will host Becker College on Tuesday at 3:30 p.m.