Zahensky records 12 saves

EASTON, Mass. (September 25, 2013) – Less than eight minutes into the second half on Wednesday night, senior forward Chanelle Letarte (Lunenburg, Mass.) found the back of the cage for her team-leading fourth goal of the season, as the Franklin Pierce University field hockey team surged out of the halftime break in hopes of rallying from a 3-0 deficit. Though the offense continued to generate chances throughout the second half, it would be the only goal of the night for Franklin Pierce, which dropped a 3-1 decision to No. 4 nationally ranked Stonehill in non-conference play at W.B. Mason Stadium. Senior forward Kelly Gouveia scored twice in the victory for Stonehill.

With the loss, Franklin Pierce falls to 1-5 (0-0 Northeast-10), while Stonehill improves to 7-0 (1-0 Northeast-10). The two teams will meet for their Northeast-10 Conference contest on Oct. 23 in Rindge. Stonehill is off to its fastest start since 2007, when it also opened 7-0.

Stonehill opened with a quick score, as Gouveia struck for the first time just 3:17 into the contest, with her second of the season. With the Franklin Pierce defense trying to clear the ball, sophomore midfielder Maggie Travers forced a turnover near the top of the circle on the offensive right side. After she gained control of the ball, she drove it towards the cage, and Gouveia was able to redirect it home.

From there, the Franklin Pierce attack, which seemed far more organized than it has looked thus far in 2013, held its own for the next 15 minutes before Stonehill asserted itself. The Skyhawks would strike off a corner attempt in the 19th minute and on a counter-attack in the 28th to take a 3-0 lead into halftime.

On a 19th-minute penalty corner, Stonehill sent the ball in to the top of the circle to its leading scorer, sophomore forward Erika Kelly, who came into the game with 13 goals in just five games. Kelly ripped a shot from the top of the circle which Franklin Pierce freshman goalkeeper Amy Zahensky (Bow, N.H.) knocked away. However, the defense could not clear the circle after the initial save and senior midfielder Kelsey Davis tracked down the rebound to score her second goal of the campaign.

In the 28th minute, Franklin Pierce earned a penalty corner and ran a play which attempted to find Letarte at the right post for a redirect, but the feed was off-target and the ball went harmlessly out of bounds over the end line. Stonehill restarted quickly and worked the ball out of the defensive end before the Ravens could find their shape in the midfield. The Skyhawks seized the opportunity amidst the disorganization and continued to push forward, out-pacing multiple Franklin Pierce defenders who had not dropped quickly enough off the failed corner at the other end. As a result, Kelly had the ball and space to work with approaching the top of the circle, while Gouveia got behind senior back Jess Rogers (Uxbridge, Mass.) on a rush down the left-wing side. Kelly hit Gouveia in stride, and the latter sent the ball towards the cage. Zahensky got a piece of the shot, but not quite enough to keep it from trickling towards the goal line. In a last-ditch effort to prevent the goal, both Zahensky and one of her defenders wound up in the cage, but they took the ball with them, leaving Gouveia with her second goal of the night.

Franklin Pierce came out strong to start the second half, and Letarte got the team on the board just 7:54 into the stanza. With the Ravens moving the ball up the left side of the field, it wound up with senior midfielder Alesia Gleason (Harwich, Mass.) outside the left side of the circle. She swept a pass into the middle where junior forward Tori Gamache (Goffstown, N.H.), Letarte and a pair of Stonehill defenders were all waiting for it. The ball made its way past Gamache and the Stonehill defense to the waiting Letarte, who one-timed it inside the right post for her second goal in as many games.

While the box score appears lopsided, the game was anything but, with the Franklin Pierce defense resisting the relentless Stonehill attack for most of the night, mostly thanks to the solid play of Zahensky. A large focus of the Stonehill offense is to draw penalty corners by working the ball into the circle along the end line and forcing the defense into mistakes. The Skyhawks did generate 15 corners but, despite all the chances, only created 15 shots of goal, of which Zahensky batted away 12, her highest save total of the season. For its part, Franklin Pierce generated seven corner attempts of its own, only the second of five Northeast-10 opponents to create that many opportunities against Stonehill.

Unfortunately, Zahensky was left without much to show for the effort, as she suffered the loss (1-5) between the pipes for Franklin Pierce. Rogers added a defensive save for the Ravens. At the other end of the field, junior Elizabeth Genovese made three saves against four shots on goal to pick up the win (7-0) for Stonehill.

The Ravens return to the field on Friday, Sept. 27, when they return home to host LIU Post in their Northeast-10 Conference opener. Game time is set for 7 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' online store (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu/store).