Cote notches first career shutout

MANCHESTER, N.H. (October 2, 2012) – A drive off a penalty corner by senior midfielder Megan Bird (Laconia, N.H.) with 3:34 to play in the first overtime on Tuesday night ricocheted off a defender and into the back of the cage to give the Franklin Pierce University field hockey team a 1-0 road win over Saint Anselm in Northeast-10 Conference play at Grappone Stadium. Freshman goalkeeper Sarah Cote (Athol, Mass.) made nine saves for her first collegiate shutout.

With the win, Franklin Pierce improves to 3-9 (1-4 Northeast-10), while Saint Anselm falls to 4-8 (2-3 Northeast-10). The victory snapped a nine-game losing streak for Franklin Pierce, which had not won since Sept. 6. All three wins thus far in 2012 for the Ravens have come in overtime.

As is generally the case in field hockey, with the teams reduced to seven players each, overtime featured offensive rushes at both ends of the field before the Ravens put home the game-winner. Franklin Pierce seemed to have the better of the chances in the extra session, as it had a potential 2-on-1 broken up by a slick defensive play by Saint Anselm senior midfielder Nicole Guimond on the backcheck, had another 2-on-1 stifled by a save by freshman goalkeeper Shauna Whittemore and saw junior midfielder Jessica Rogers (Uxbridge, Mass.) whistle a shot just wide of the left post off a penalty corner, all within the first seven minutes of overtime.

All those chances came after Cote had to make her only save of overtime amidst a flurry of Saint Anselm scoring chances over the first four minutes of the frame, but before Bird played hero for the night. Just before the 11-minute mark of the stanza, the Ravens were awarded a penalty corner and generated a shot on goal. Whittemore made the save, but the ensuing action led to another Franklin Pierce penalty corner. Rogers injected the ball to Bird outside the circle on the left-wing side. Bird stepped into the circle, wound and drove the ball towards the cage. The shot deflected off the defense, around Whittemore and into the back of the net to give Bird her second goal of the season and set off the celebration for the Ravens.

Though regulation had gone without a goal, the game was not left wanting for scoring chances. At the end of both the first and second halves, the Franklin Pierce backline had to fend off penalty corners after time had expired, allowing Saint Anselm to push all its field players into the circle. Each time, the defense held its ground and did not allow the Hawks to record a shot attempt.

Early in the second half, Rogers recorded her second defensive save in as many games, shutting down a scoring chance with Cote caught off her line. The ensuing scramble on the play led to a penalty stroke being awarded to Saint Anselm, attempted by senior forward Kristina Katsikis. Katsikis went to the lower-left corner with her shot, but Cote was equal to the challenge and turned it aside.

Perhaps the best scoring chance for either side in regulation came from Saint Anselm in the aftermath of a penalty corner with less than two minutes to play. After the initial shot on the play was blocked by the defense, the Hawks retained possession and pushed another shot towards the cage. Junior back Eliza Jalbert, who had taken the corner and headed in front of the left post, got her stick to the shot and came up with a deflection that got the better of Cote. However, Jalbert also redirected it around the cage, and the ball sailed harmlessly out of bounds.

When all was said and done, Cote wound up with nine saves and the first shutout of her career to pick up the win (3-9) in net for Franklin Pierce. Whittemore stopped seven of the eight shots on goal at her end of the field and suffered the loss (2-1) between the pipes for Saint Anselm.

The Ravens return to the field on Thursday, Oct. 4, when they return home to host No. 7 nationally ranked Merrimack in a Northeast-10 Conference contest. Game time is set for 6 p.m. at Sodexo Field in Rindge.

For more information on Franklin Pierce Athletics, please visit the official website of Franklin Pierce Athletics (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu). Also be sure to follow the Ravens through the Department of Athletics' official Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/FranklinPierceRavens), its YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/franklinpiercesports) and its Twitter feed (http://twitter.com/FPUathletics). Fans wishing to purchase Franklin Pierce field hockey apparel can do so at the Department of Athletics' brand new online store (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu/store).