Box Score
MANSFIELD, Conn. -- Junior
Emma Sanson (Thomaston) and first-year player
Rebecca Minaya (Stafford) each scored twice as the Eastern Connecticut State University field hockey team won its Little East Conference home-opener, 4-1, over defending conference champion University of Southern Maine Saturday afternoon at Rick McCarthy Field.
Now 4-2 at home, Eastern ended a three-match losing streak by handing Southern Maine (4-9, 0-2 LEC) its fifth loss in the last six outings. The Huskies were 6-0 a year ago in the conference regular season and went on to their first conference playoff championship in 20 years.
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Minaya and Sanson each scored to give the Warriors a 2-0 lead less than 15 minutes into the match – Sanson making it 2-0 with just 24 seconds left in the quarter -- and Sanson made it 3-0 midway through the third quarter with her team-leading sixth goal of the year – 17
th of her 46-game career when she collected her own rebound of an initial shot saved by junior goalie Eleanor Folsom.
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After USM got one back when freshman Leah Thibodeau beat Eastern senior goalie
Kiana Webster (Raymond, ME) -- and the clock --  with two seconds left in the third quarter, Minaya punched in her fifth of the season – most among first-year players – with nine minutes left.
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Making her tenth start of the year, Webster turned away three shots to even her season record at 5-5, all of her saves coming in the third quarter. Southern Maine collected seven of the eight penalty corners in the match, but Eastern's starting defense of seniors
Morgan Anjos (Westfield, MA), Emma Stearns (Medway, MA) and
Aly Kendrick (North Branford) and junior
Angelina Falleni (Byram, NJ) limited the Huskies to only six shots – equalling the opponents' third-lowest total of the season. Webster lowered her goals-against average to 2.06 and raised her save percentage to .730
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Eastern visits Roger Williams University Monday at 4 p.m. in a late non-conference addition to the schedule before resuming conference play Friday at VTSU Castleton at 6 p.m. at Dave Wolk Stadium. The Spartans (10-4, 1-0 LEC) won their conference opener, 5-0, Saturday at Western Connecticut State University – their fourth straight victory. Castleton has out-scored those four opponents, 23-3.
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