PLYMOUTH, N.H. – The Eastern Connecticut State University women's soccer team moved within a win, unofficially, of securing a first-round home match in the upcoming Little East Conference playoffs after playing homestanding Plymouth State University to a scoreless tie Saturday afternoon at Arold Field.
 
Entering the day in a tie for third place in the conference, Eastern (6-5-4, 3-2-2 LEC) dropped into fifth place in the nine-team conference with 11 points after the University of Massachusetts Boston shut out visiting Western Connecticut State University  and Castleton University edged homestanding University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, 2-1. Castleton opened the day tied with Eastern for third place and UMass Boston was fifth.
 
Next Saturday in the regular-season finales, UMass Boston (12 points) visits Castleton University (13) while Eastern hosts UMass Dartmouth at noon at Rick McCarthy Field. Unofficially, an Eastern win would leave the Warriors with 14 points, while the Castleton-UMass Boston loser would finish behind Eastern in the final point standings. If those teams tie, Castleton would share fourth place with Eastern while UMass Boston would finish fifth, a point behind Eastern and Castleton.
 
Saturday's match against Plymouth (5-7-3, 1-4-3 LEC) was the fourth shutout in the last six meetings between the programs, Eastern having won each of the three previous shutouts. Eastern had posted a 4-0 win over the Panthers a year ago at Rick McCarthy Field. It is the first time the teams have played to a scoreless tie in the 39-game history of the series.
 
Junior Emily Wallace (Smithtown, NY) made nine saves to record her third full shutout (her first also a scoreless tie at Trinity College five weeks ago). She has also shared three.
 
The team's fourth tie equals the second-most in a season in program history, one shy of the 2010 team which finished unbeaten in the regular season and finished 16-1-5 and won the NCAA regional championship.
 
Plymouth outshot Eastern, 18-9, but was unable to end its winless streak, which reached seven (0-4-3) since upsetting UMass Boston at home, 1-0, a month ago. It was the Panthers' third straight shutout, following 1-0 conference losses to the University of Southern Maine and Castleton.