Box Score
MANSFIELD, Conn.  – Keene State College has won 16 Little East Conference field hockey titles, but none of its runs may have been more difficult than the one this year.
 
In Thursday's semifinal, the second-seeded Owls (15-6) needed a goal with 13 seconds left in regulation to force overtime before advancing with a sudden-death shootout win, then, in Saturday's championship game  on the road against top-seeded Eastern Connecticut State University, was able to break a scoreless tie by scoring the only goal with13 minutes left and holding off the Warriors.
 
Making its third finals appearance – all against Keene but for the first time at home – Eastern (12-9) held a slim shot advantage (10-8) and matched Keene's penalty corners (eight each) but couldn't match its offensive firepower when it had downed the host Owls on their home field, 4-2, three weeks ago.
 
On Saturday, both teams had its chances through the first three quarters but could not break through against goalies Hannah Jalowiec (Cheshire) of Eastern and her counterpart, Molly Diamonstein of Keene -- until junior forward Meghan Daileanes knocked in a loose ball eight seconds after inserting a penalty corner, marking the 15^th time that the LEC title games has been decided by one goal.
 
A freshman who had logged only 420 minutes up until Saturday, Diamonstein made a pair of saves in the opening minutes to hold off Eastern's early surge, then made three of her game total of six saves when Eastern pressured the net (compiling five of its corners) in the final quarter.  Diamondstein, who came off the bench to play only (the final) 13 minutes and allow just one goal in Eastern's 4-2 win at Keene in the regular season, made two saves in succession with ten minutes left on bids by first-year midfielder Ada Ellis (Mystic) and sophomore Jenna Boardman (Columbia). In the final four minutes, Eastern had four corners, with only one of them producing a shot (that was blocked).
 

As it has all year, the Eastern defense kept the Warriors in the match. On Saturday, sophomore Rebecca Minaya (Stafford) in the first half and Ellis in the second half shadowed national scoring leader Grace Bazin.  Named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player, Bazin managed only two shots – the only one on cage coming four minutes into the fourth quarter that was kicked out by Jalowiec. (Bazin earned her MOP bauble on the strength of her semifinal performance against the University of Southern Maine when she tied the match on a penalty stroke with 13 seconds left in regulation, and won it with a sudden-death penalty stroke in the shootout round.
 
Boardman, senior Emma Sanson (Thomaston) and junior Grace Barlage (Guilford) combined to take seven of Eastern's shots, forcing Diamonstein to make four saves. Midway through the third quarter of a scoreless match, Barlage centered a crossing pass from the left through the circle but Sanson – team's leading scorer with a season-tying record 15 goals couldn't gain control. With the Warriors pushing forward to earn the equalizing goal, Sanson found herself alone racing down the right wing with five minutes left, dribbling toward goal, where Diamonstein came off her line to break it up before Sanson could get off a clean shot.
 
After totalling only 105 minutes in five appearances as a junior, Jalowiec proved her meddle this year, winning nine of 13 decisions with a 1.68 goals-against average and .753 save percentage in nearly 800 minutes. After splitting time through the first month of the season Jalowiec started the final 13 matches of the year, winning five straight starts at one point and seven of eight heading into Saturday's final.
 
The finals appearance was the 21^st for Keene (16-5) since the inception of the LEC sport in 1998. The championship match was the first for Eastern at home as the No. 1 seed. As the No. 4 seed in 2015, Eastern lost to Keene in the final before returning as the No. 3 seed in 2021 to defeat the Owls.