Senior All-American Emily Sideris scored a goal in her season debut for the Skyhawks. (PHOTO BY Andrew Katsampes) |
Colleen Sears posts goal and assist, Katherine Sears posts 13 saves for Hawks
EASTON, Mass. (September 30, 2014) – Saint Anselm College knocked off its second-straight fourth-ranked team over the last 11 days with a 3-1 victory over Stonehill College, ranked No. 4 in this week's Penn Monto/National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) Division II poll, in non-conference field hockey action at Timothy J. Coughlin Memorial Field at W.B. Mason Stadium tonight.
Sophomore Katherine Sears (Northboro, Massachusetts/Algonquin Regional) posted 13 saves, including eight in the second half, for Saint Anselm as Stonehill peppered the Hawks cage for a 30-7 advantage in shots on the night and earned a 16-2 edge in penalty corners. Freshman back Zoe Griffin (Duxbury, Massachusetts/Duxbury) also cleared a Stonehill shot off the line in the first half for a defensive save to keep the game scoreless at halftime.
Junior Colleen Sears (Danvers, Massachusetts/Bishop Fenwick) paced the Saint Anselm attack with a goal and assist, setting up the game winning goal by freshman Mia Vecchione (Chelmsford, Massachusetts/Bishop Guertin) and then potting an insurance marker over the final nine minutes of the contest. Junior Meagan Halligan (North Branford, Connecticut/North Branford) chipped in with a goal for the Hawks, who added tonight's win to a 3-2 overtime triumph against then-fourth ranked LIU Post their last time out on September 19.
Senior All-American Emily Sideris (Watertown, Massachusetts/Watertown) scored the lone Stonehill goal in her first game of the season. Junior Elizabeth Genovese (Street, Maryland/North Harford) finished with three saves in the Skyhawks cage.
Halligan opened the scoring 3:07 into the second half after a scoreless first half as she took a long pass off a counterattack from midfield by sophomore Kelsey Leblanc (Londonderry, New Hampshire/Londonderry) and deked Genovese who was charging off her line before netting her first goal of the season. Sideris leveled the score just over 12 minutes later when she knocked in a rebound off the post by senior Jennifer Foley (Holden, Massachusetts/Notre Dame Academy) at 50:18. The Skyhawks hit the post twice in the contest, in addition to the 13 save effort of Katherine Sears.
Vecchione's first collegiate goal put Saint Anselm back on top with 8:44 to play when she one-timed a pass from Colleen Sears from the right side into the left side of the cage. Sears followed with her second goal of the year to seal the win with 4:01 remaining on the counter after a long carry down the left side, pushing the ball over the goal line after Genovese charged and tried to poke check the ball away.
Stonehill (5-1, 0-0 NE-10) is back in action here at W.B. Mason Stadium on Saturday when it opens its Northeast-10 Conference schedule by hosting Southern New Hampshire University at noon. Saint Anselm (4-1, 0-0 NE-10) hosts Southern Connecticut State University for its NE-10 opener Saturday at 1 p.m.
For the latest on Stonehill Athletics, follow the Skyhawks via social media on Twitter and Facebook. Fans can also download the Stonehill Skyhawks mobile app on iTunes and the Android Market.
