PLYMOUTH, N.H. – Conventional wisdom would have told Plymouth State University that lining up the Eastern Connecticut State University field hockey as an easy target to celebrate a victory to christen a new home venue would have been an ideal idea.

As everyone would agree, however, this year has been anything but conventional.

On Sunday, as Plymouth's first opponent on a new on-campus turf facility, Eastern equaled its previous 22-year win total against Plymouth with its second victory this year over the Panthers, 2-1, at Panther Field.

Playing back-to-back games against Plymouth (0-2) 12 days and 200 miles apart, Eastern (3-0) moved to within one of tying the program record of four consecutive victories with a 2-1 non-conference triumph that spoiled the Panthers' first game on a home facility since 2014 (the team had played on the turf at nearby New Hampton School since that ECAC New England Tournament championship game at Arold Field on the PSU campus).

Playing against Plymouth's full arsenal of seven substitutes, Eastern outlasted the hosts despite having only two players off the bench to spell the starters – juniors Corey Callahan (South Windsor) and Katelyn Miller (Wallingford), the latter playing a fulltime role this spring with the softball program and a part-time one in field hockey.

In keeping with the scenario from Eastern's 4-1 home win over Plymouth less than two weeks ago, the Warriors scored first Sunday, with the Panthers tying it, and Eastern later recording the game-winner. It was only Eastern's fourth win over PSU in this 26-game series, but all have come in the last seven meetings after Plymouth had dispatched Eastern the first 19 times the programs had met.

Eastern struck first and last Sunday. The teams traded goals two minutes apart in the final three minutes of the first half, before freshman Isabel Sanchez's (Weston)  second goal in two matches against Plymouth this year with 11 minutes left stood up.

Senior Brianna Nolan's (Watertown) team-leading fifth goal of the year on her only shot off freshman Leah Kowalasky's (Middlebury) first career helper made it 1-0, and after Plymouth junior Leah Mayes knotted the game less than two minutes later, the game remained scoreless until Sanchez sent a back-hander through traffic off a feed from junior Bryce Makula (Guilford).

After missing her first career match in the earlier win over Plymouth, senior goalie Keira Integlia (Branford) made four saves upon her return for her 13^th career win (third all-time) and second against Plymouth (she made seven saves in 75 minutes in the OT victory as a freshman in 2018).
Eastern doubled Plymouth's shot total and dominated play with a +12-4 advantage in penalty corners.

Eastern hosts New England College in a non-conference match April 22 at 5 p.m.