Fitchburg State Holds Off Southern Maine, 2-1
| Final | 1 | 2 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Fitchburg St. (7-10, 2-9 LEC) | 1 | 1 | 2 |
|
Southern Me. (8-12, 5-6 LEC) | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Hoffman and Miller net one goal each in Falcon LEC victory
GORHAM, Maine. – Sophomore Madeline Hoffman had a goal and an assist to lead the Fitchburg State Univeristy Falcons to a 2-1 win over the University of Southern Maine Huskies in a Little East Conference field hockey game Saturday afternoon at Hannaford Field.
The win is the third straight for the Falcons who conclude the 2014 campaign at 7-10 overall and 3-8 in the Little East Conference. Southern Maine falls to 8-12 overall and 5-6 in the LEC. The Huskies will await the pairing for the 2014 Little East Conference Tournament which begins on Tuesday, November 4.
Hoffman set up Fitchburg State's first goal of the game when she sent a ball to the right side of the cage from the top of the circle to a waiting freshman Bailey Miller. Miller redirected the Hoffman pass in the 16th minute to score her fourth goal of the season and put the Falcons ahead 1-0. Southern Maine outshot FSU 8-6 in the opening half, but Fitchburg senior goalkeeper Lucy Holewa made several key saves to keep the Falcons ahead.
In the second half, FSU doubled its advantage just six minutes into the second half as Hoffman notched her third goal of the season in the 42nd minute. Hoffman ran onto a through ball from junior Erin Morrissey and beat Southern Maine sophomore goalkeeper Amanda Kasbohm to the far post for a 2-0 Falcon lead.
Husky junior Allison Ward pulled her team to within a goal eight minutes later. Ward launched a powerful shot form the right side of the circle beating Holewa for her ninth goal of the season as USM trailed 2-1.
The Huskies had several strong opportunities in the final 10 minutes, including three of its nine penalty corners, but the Fitchburg State defense held for the win. Falcon freshman Rachael Denning cleared a near goal off of the line for a defensive save with just six minutes to play on a strong scoring bid from USM sophomore Jennifer Poulin.
Throughout the contest, Southern Maine finished with a 16-8 advantage in shots, while also holding a 9-5 edge in penalty corners. In the cage, Kasbohm finished the game making four saves in the setback for the Huskies, while Holewa turned back five shots en-route to the victory for Fitchburg State.