Box Score KEENE, N.H. – Twice in the last four years, the Eastern Connecticut State University women's soccer team has shaken off a Little East Conference regular-season loss at Keene State College to defeat the top-seeded Owls on their home field in the conference playoff championship match.
If the Warriors hope to claim a fifth LEC title in 11 years, they may have to do it again.
At right: Kaitlyn Kennedy
Playing its sixth straight road match, Eastern (4-3-0, 0-2-0 LEC) lost its first two conference matches for the first time in 24 years of conference competition when Keene scored twice to break a tie and handed the Warriors their third straight loss, 3-1 at the Owl Athletic Complex Saturday afternoon.
Keene State (6-2-1, 2-0-0) extended its unbeaten streak to four games by downing Eastern for only the second time in the last six meetings between two of the circuits top programs. Eastern and Keene have combined to reach the LEC playoff final 18 times in 14 seasons.
With the victory, Keene keeps pace in the LEC standings with Western Connecticut and 2012 champion Massachusetts Boston, all at 2-0-0. Eastern, Rhode Island College and Plymouth State have all lost their first two conference matches.
Trailing 1-0, Eastern tied the game up six minutes later when freshman midfielder Hailey Lehning (Woodbury) deflected a pass from senior midfielder Kaitlyn Kennedy (Burlington) under the crossbar for her first career goal.
After providing Keene with its 1-0 lead in the 18th minutes, Bev Cole and Jessica Berthiaume hooked up again eight minutes after Lehning's strike to give Keene a 2-1 lead with 13 minutes left in the first half . Receiving a cross, Cole got a Warrior defender to commit, then laid the ball over to Berthiaume for her team-leading sixth goal of the season.
Cole set up Keene State's third goal that made it 3-1 at the 31:42 mark of the second half. The senior midfielder served the ball in to the box where classmate Brittany Boscarino knocked it into the net for her third goal of the season.
Senior Haley Kenyon had a chance to extend the Owls lead later in the half, but Eastern junior goalie Rachel Skelton (East Lyme) stopped her close-range shot.
Looking to cut into the Owls lead with 17:38 to go, Lehning got around the corner of the Owls' defense, but Keene junior goalie Torrie Crenson was able to get a hand on her shot, tipping it into the air before grabbing the ball.
Minutes, later, Crenson came up big once again, going airborne to knock a shot by junior midfielder Taylor Shannon (Waterford) from 22-yards out over the crossbar.
Making her fifth start in the last six games, Skelton made four saves.
Keene State and Eastern each finished with 11 shots, the Warriors enjoyed a substantial advantage in corner kicks, allowing only one.
Eastern hosts Connecticut College Tuesday at 7 p.m.
