KEENE, NH – Coming into the season, Eastern Connecticut State University field hockey was considered an underdog in terms of contending for the 2021 Little East Conference Championship. The Warriors were ranked eighth in the preseason poll to start the season coming off a 6-12 campaign in 2019 followed by a 4-2 record in the spring season played due to the pandemic. One of the biggest question marks was at the goalie position as four-year starter Keira Integlia graduated in May, but all questions were answered when junior goalie Sarah Gallagher (South Windsor) stepped into the net for Eastern.

    Gallagher and the three-seeded Warriors (14-5) were faced with their toughest task of the Little East Conference Tournament as they squared off with top-seeded and 14-time Little East Conference Champion Keene State College (12-11) at the Owl Athletic Complex in a 2015 Little East Conference Championship rematch in which the Owls beat the Warriors 2-1. Despite being down three players at one point in the third quarter, the South Windsor native and the top defensive team in the Little East held the top-scoring offensive team in the Little East scoreless, leaving Keene, New Hampshire with the 1-0 win and their first-ever Little East Conference Championship in the program's 25-year history.
 
    Just two days after scoring the fastest goal in program history (48 seconds), sophomore forward Isabel Sanchez (Weston) would be the difference maker for the Warriors in the Little East Conference Championship match. It started with a penalty corner by first-year midfielder Liz LaMarco (West Hartford) and an initial shot fired at sophomore goalie Victoria Watson by sophomore midfielder Leah Kowalasky (Middlebury) was knocked down as Watson fell to her knees. After a brief scrum to the right of the net, the ball found the stick of Sanchez who wrapped it around Watson's right pad and into the far-left side of the goal to put Eastern ahead 1-0 just six minutes into the match.
 
    Less than 30 seconds later, graduate forward Brianna Nolan (Watertown) would look to capitalize off a turnover in the circle by the Owls as she fired a shot at Watson who dove to her right to make the stop and keep the deficit at one. Sophomore forward Kaylee Drobish (Wallingford) looked to put the Warriors ahead by two in the late stages of the first quarter, but her shot would go harmlessly to the right of Watson in the goal mouth.
 
    After Eastern would outshoot Keene State 4-1 in the first quarter (3-0 on goal), defense would be the story of the second quarter for both teams as neither offense would manufacture a shot. The Owls would be awarded two penalty corners in the frame, but the stout defense of the Warriors continuously suffocated their opponent's high-octane offense. The defensive group of first-year forward Aly Kendrick (North Branford), junior Grace Mangiameli (Suffield), senior Bryce Makula (Guilford), and Leah Kowalasky would not allow Keene State to advance deep into the circle to create any opportunities. Heading into the break, the Owls would have a 4-3 advantage in penalty corners while the Warriors led in shots 4-1 (3-0 on goal) and a 1-0 lead with 30 minutes left to play.
 
    Keene State's top offense would be on full display in the second half as the Owls would have four penalty corners within the first 41 seconds and five in the first two minutes. However, junior defender Hailey Partridge and first-year forward Irini Stefanakos would be the only two Keene State players to take shot attempts at Gallagher but both would go wide.

    The Owls had an opportunity to shift the momentum in their direction with under 11 minutes to go in the third quarter of play when Makula, Sanchez, and LaMarco all were sidelined for a few minutes in the match as a mixture of green and yellow cards would give Keene State up to a three-man advantage at one point in the 15-minute frame coming out of the break.  Despite a three-man advantage, the Owls were unable to break through against Eastern's defensive front and with a two-man advantage were only able to create one shot opportunity which was blocked in the circle. Over the course of the time Keene State had the advantage, they would only have two shots, and both were blocked before they could reach Gallagher in the goal.
 
    Coming out in the fourth quarter, the Owls looked to create an offensive explosion and push their way past the Warriors for their 15^th Little East Conference Championship. Following a penalty corner from junior midfielder Maggie Cahoon, an initial shot by Stefanakos was kicked away by Gallagher before sophomore defender Demetria Gonzalez looked for a shot following the rebound that Gallagher would turn away for a second time in a matter of seconds. Cahoon would take two more penalty corners in the early stages of the fourth quarter, but neither would turn into a scoring chance for Keene State.
 
    

Seeming to have the Warriors on their heels, the Owls would try for the equalizer off another Cahoon penalty corner with just under five minutes to play. The shot by junior midfielder Lauren Hausser would go wide of the goal mouth, but Keene State would quickly make their way back into the circle where junior forward Ellie Hunkins wound up and rocketed a shot at Gallagher who knocked it away and with the help of the defense in front of her, Eastern was able to clear the ball from their defensive zone.
 
    With just over two minutes remaining in regulation, the Owls have one last gasp effort following a Cahoon penalty corner. After making a pass to the top of the circle, a shot fake by Stefanakos left the ball on the stick of first-year midfielder Hannah Wood would located Cahoon near the right side of the goal. Wood would try using her teammates as a screen before firing a shot at Gallagher that was knocked away and then kicked out of bounds to prevent a second chance opportunity. It would be the last shot Keene State would have at knotting up the score and despite holding an 18-4 lead in penalty corners and 11-5 lead in shots (3-3 for both teams in shots on goal), the story of the game was the relentless effort from the Warrior defense.
 
    Bryce Makula was named Most Outstanding Player of the Little East Conference Tournament. Makula was one of the anchors on the Warrior defense that held opponents scoreless during the tournament while contributing on offense with one goal in the quarterfinals against Plymouth State University, an assist in the semifinals against Worcester State University, and playing the entirety of all three matches in the tournament.
 
    Coming away with her third shutout in three Little East Conference Tournament matches, Sarah Gallagher had another perfect day in net, recording three saves on three attempts to bring her postseason total to 10 saves during Eastern's tournament run. The junior goalie has shutout five of her last seven opponents and has now accumulated six full-match shutouts this season. That mark makes her the record holder for most full-match shutouts in the 25-year history of the program, surpassing Samantha Scavo '16 who held the previous record with five back in 2013. Gallagher is now 2-0 in her career against Keene State and the Warriors have won their last three matchups with the Owls after losing 23 of their previous 25 games dating back to 1998.
 
    Earning her 12^th win in the semifinals, Gallagher broke the record for most wins in a single-season for the program as she surpassed the 11-win mark set by Jennifer Makwana '02 in 2001 and Samantha Scavo '16 in 2015. The win against Keene State brings her total to 13 wins for the season, further solidifying her name in the record books of Eastern Connecticut State University field hockey.
 
    Capping off a storybook season in the Little East Conference and Little East Conference Tournament, the Warriors earn an automatic bid into the NCAA Division III Field Hockey Tournament riding a five-game win streak – tying their longest win streak of the season – and will play in a first round game on Wednesday. The time, location, and opponent are to be determined as they will be released by the NCAA in the coming days on the NCAA website (NCAA.com).