Box Score DARTMOUTH, Mass. -- All-New England junior forward Emily Becher (Brooklyn) scored three goals in a match for the first time in her 43-game career to power the Eastern Connecticut State University women's soccer team to its 12th straight Little East Conference regular-season win, 3-0, over the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth in the Little East Conference opener for both teams Saturday night at Cressy Field.
It marked the 22nd time in the program's 31-year history that a player has scored at least three goals. Becher had connected for two goals ten previous times before netting the hat trick en route to a career-high six points.
Ranked fourth in New England, Eastern (4-1-0) has not lost an LEC regular-season match since Oct. 4, 2014. The Warriors have won six straight against UMass (2-4-0) and stretched their unbeaten streak against the Corsairs to 21 (20-0-1) since 1995.
Becher gave Eastern the early lead ten minutes into action when she caught up to a breakaway pass from sophomore All-America defender Maggie Bodington (Stratford) and dribbled past UMD junior keeper Becca Field. Less than six minutes later, she weaved through the Corsairs' defense and beat Field to make it 2-0; and with 12 minutes left, completed the hat trick. She found the back of the net on all three of her scoring attempts.
Sophomore keeper Kayla Labrecque (Westhampton, MA) made saves to record her first career shutout in her second career start and lower her goals-against average this year to 1.40 in 321 minutes. Eastern's defense of starters Bodington, juniors Krista Petersen (Wallingford) and Michele D'Agata (West Suffield) and sophomore Lauren Valenti (Walpole, MA) did not surrender a corner kick.
Eastern visits Connecticut College Monday at 4:30 p.m. The Camels (3-0-0) are ranked No. 5 in New England.
