Field Hockey Loses to Keene Owls in Little East Championship Game

Keene, NH – The Panther field hockey team lost 2-0 to interstate the rival Keene State College Owls in the Little East tournament Championship game this past Saturday, Nov 6. They dominated Worcester State College, 3-2, the previous day to advance to the final. In the semi-final game, the Panthers dominated throughout, keeping the Worcester defense on their toes. Senior Amanda Gutowski got the scoring started for the Panthers, nailing a shot with 30:25 left in the first half, while Christina Farias notched the assist. Sophomore Melanie Bates made the score 2-0 when she scored with just over a minute left in the first half, freshman Jenna Lace assisting on the play. Lace added a goal of her own nine minutes into the second half to bring to score to 3-0 Panthers. Worcester would not give up. They scored two quick goals with less than 20:00 left in the game to bring the score to 3-2 Plymouth. The Panthers quickly got back on track and shut the uprising down and held on for the win. “Through three quarters of the game we had total control of the game, but we gave Worcester some momentum” Panther Head Coach Bonnie Lord described. “When you let them in the door you have got to make sure you shut it behind you because you don’t want to give them any momentum when you’re in the tournament.” In the Little-East finals the following day, it was a hard fought battle throughout with both teams battling back and forth. Keene got out to an early lead, scoring three minutes into the game. Sophomore Amanda Rosenbeck scored the goal off a corner play with Rachel Ladd getting the assist. The Owls had the same success in the second half with an early goal. The goal came from senior Kaitlin Henley and was unassisted. The Panthers came close many times to scoring, but the Owl goaltending and defense was to strong. Despite the loss, the season is not over for the Panther field hockey team (15-4). They have received the number one seed in the ECAC (Eastern College Athletic Conference) tournament. The Panthers will play the team they beat in the Little-East semi-final in eighth-seeded Worcester State College (11-7) in the first round at Plymouth Wednesday, Nov. 10 at 2:00 p.m. at Arold Field.