Fitchburg, Mass. – The Fitchburg State field hockey team dropped a 7-2 decision to the Engineers of WPI in non-conference action this afternoon at Elliot Field.

The Basics

Score: Fitchburg State 2, WPI 7
Records: Fitchburg State (1-3) | WPI (2-3)

How It Happened

The Engineers notched a pair of goals to take an early 2-0 lead.  Eliza Dutson (Woodstock, Conn.) collected a loose ball in the circle and deposited it in the back of the net for the sophomore's first goal of the season. Junior Lauren Meinhold (Boxboro, Mass.) doubled the Engineer lead at the 18:45 mark.

The Falcons cut the deficit in half (2-1) with three minutes remaining in the second period. Freshman Sophia Yates (Woodstock, Conn.) threaded a backhanded pass to classmate Lena Kassel (Stuttgart, Germany), who tucked the ball past the WPI netminder. However, WPI regained the two-goal advantage with just four ticks remaining in the first half with a weak side goal from freshman Arie Lang (West Hartford, Conn.).

Trailing 5-1, Fitchburg State potted a goal off a blast from Kassel for her eighth goal of the season in the third period. WPI extended the lead to 7-2 with Dutson and Abigail Rauch's (Jackson, NJ) goals to close out the frame.

Inside the Numbers

• WPI held a 34-7 margin in shots while also finishing with a 21-1 edge in penalty corners
• Jenna Morse (Leominster, Mass.)  turned aside 10 shots for the Falcons in the setback
• Senior Nini Acquista (Longmeadow, Mass.) made three saves for WPI in the victory
• Dutson notched a hat-trick, converting two penalty strokes in the third period
• 15^th meeting between the two teams, Falcons are 3-12 overall vs WPI

Up Next

Falcons will host Salem State on Friday night in LEC action starting at 6:00 PM.