Burnell tallies first goal of season

RINDGE, N.H. (October 1, 2013) – Senior forward Chanelle Letarte (Lunenburg, Mass.) scored on a slick redirect late in the first half on Wednesday afternoon to tie the game at 2-2, but a pair of goals in the final 3:14 of regulation would be the undoing of the Franklin Pierce University field hockey team, as Merrimack escaped with a 4-2 victory in Northeast-10 Conference play at Sodexo Field. Senior midfielder Jessica Otis piled up six points by factoring in on all four Merrimack scores with two goals and two assists.

With the loss, Franklin Pierce falls to 1-7 (0-2 Northeast-10), while Merrimack improves to 6-3 (2-0 Northeast-10).

Franklin Pierce came out of the gate firing on all cylinders, put Merrimack back on its heels and struck first on Tuesday night. In the ninth minute of the contest, the Ravens earned a corner and worked the ball to senior back Jess Rogers (Uxbridge, Mass.) at the top of the circle off to the right side. She sent the ball towards the cage, it was deflected over most of the Merrimack defenders and then fell near the left post, right to the stick of sophomore forward Chelsey Burnell (West Baldwin, Maine), who easily finished off her first goal of 2013.

After several more minutes of lackluster play, Merrimack head coach Anne Rounce burned her timeout in the 15th minute and had choice words for her team. The Warriors responded immediately, striking in the 17th minute to level the game at 1-1. Amidst a flurry of action in front of the cage -- which included a defensive save by junior back Brittany Lepore (Barnstable, Mass.), who kept the ball from finding the net inside the right post -- Merrimack was awarded a penalty stroke. Otis took the attempt and roofed it to the top of the net for her sixth goal of the season.

Otis would strike again in the 28th minute to give Merrimack a 2-1 lead. After a failed clear by the Franklin Pierce defense, freshman back Sarah Sparks worked the ball to Otis at the top of the circle. Otis sent a shot along the ground which somehow made its way untouched through a mess of traffic in the circle and slipped inside the left post for her second score of the night.

Franklin Pierce regrouped and renewed its attacking efforts after the second Otis goal, and it paid off quickly, as the Ravens drew even in the 28th minute. As Franklin Pierce built the attack, junior forward Tori Gamache (Goffstown, N.H.) wound up with the ball and a lane to shoot on the left-wing side of the circle. As she sent the ball towards the cage, Letarte cut across the goalmouth from right to left, got her stick on the ball and changed the shot's trajectory, allowing it to elude the goalkeeper for Letarte's team-leading fifth goal of the season.

The Letarte goal sent the game to halftime tied 2-2, and the game would remain tied until its latter stages. After the clock ticked under 15 minutes to play, Merrimack earned five penalty corners over the next 12 minutes, and finally cashed in with 3:14 to play. Sophomore midfielder Christine Zubkus injected the ball to Otis at the top of the circle. Otis waited for Zubkus to make her way to the left post, and then let loose with a drive, straight to the stick of Zubkus, who finished off her second goal of the year.

Less than three minutes later, off another corner attempt, the Warriors found an insurance marker to create the 4-2 final. Again the ball came to Otis at the top of the circle, though this time she opted for a pass instead of a drive. She found freshman forward Maura Doyle in front of the right post, and Doyle deflected home her third of the campaign.

Freshman goalkeeper Amy Zahensky (Bow, N.H.) made seven saves against 11 shots on goal and took the loss (1-7) in net for Franklin Pierce. In addition to the aforementioned defensive save by Lepore, sophomore back Natalia Bachelder (South Berwick, Mass.) picked one up as well, as she turned aside a second-half shot which had slipped through the pads of Zahensky.

At the other end of the field, sophomore goalkeeper Madison Davis made only one save against the three shots on her cage, but picked up the win (5-1) in goal for Merrimack.

The Ravens return to the field on Saturday, Oct. 5, when they travel to Adelphi for a Northeast-10 Conference contest. Game time is set for 1 p.m. at Motamed Field in Garden City, N.Y. Franklin Pierce next plays at home on Saturday, Oct. 12 against Saint Michael's at 1 p.m.

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).