Canavan nets pair in second half

RINDGE, N.H. (November 1, 2014) – Senior forward Courtney Kelly (Plymouth, N.H.) and junior forward Chelsey Burnell (West Baldwin, Maine) had a goal and an assist each as part of a four-goal first half on Saturday afternoon, as the Franklin Pierce University field hockey team rolled to a 6-1 win over Southern New Hampshire in Northeast-10 Conference play at Sodexo Field. Freshman midfielder Amaris Taylor scored the lone goal for SNHU in defeat.

With the win, Franklin Pierce improves to 7-7 (4-3 Northeast-10) and has won five of its last six, while SNHU falls to 1-13 (0-7 Northeast-10). The win marked the latest in a season the Ravens have had a record at or above .500 since finishing the 2011 campaign at 10-9.

Franklin Pierce controlled the game from the opening minutes on Saturday afternoon. The Ravens scored four times in the opening half-hour on their way to amassing advantages of 22-5 in shot attempts, 13-3 in shots on goal and 10-4 in penalty corners on the day.

The Ravens opened the scoring in the eighth minute off the first of the 10 corners. Burnell inserted the corner with a pass to the top of the circle where sophomore midfielder Andrea Fahey (Hudson, Mass.) stopped the ball and immediately stepped into a shot. She drove the ball low and beat SNHU freshman goalkeeper Jill Piacitelli cleanly inside the right post for her third goal of the season.

Franklin Pierce doubled the lead to 2-0 in the 15th minute, working off of a long hit on the right-wing side. Stick-handling in the right-wing corner, Burnell created a lane to send the ball into the middle. Kelly was outside the right post and redirected the cross, deftly sending the ball out in front of the left post, where senior midfielder Brittany Lepore (Barnstable, Mass.) was waiting to hammer it into the empty cage for her second goal of the season.

Just 1:42 later, Kelly picked up a goal of her own, her sixth of the season, to push the lead to 3-0. Fahey had the original shot on the play, but was turned aside by Piacitelli. The rebound came straight out in front of the goal, and Kelly was waiting to finish things off.

Burnell capped the first half's scoring in the 28th minute, with her second goal of the year, in the aftermath of a messy corner attempt. Burnell injected the ball again on the corner, this time to sophomore back Shannon O'Leary (Florence, Mass.) at the top of the circle. O'Leary could not corral the feed, as the ball escaped the circle behind her. As O'Leary turned to track down the ball, Burnell made her way the front of the cage, off the right post. O'Leary gained control of the ball five yards outside the circle on the right side and drove it back towards the goal. The pass split the legs of a defender, straight to the stick of Burnell, who quickly reversed her stick and stuffed the ball inside the right post to make it 4-0.

The remainder of the first half and most of the second half went without further scoring, until Franklin Pierce struck twice in quick succession to balloon the lead to 6-0. In the 62nd minute, a rebound dropped in front of the cage, resulting in a goalmouth scramble for the loose ball. Freshman forward Carly Canavan (Kingston, N.Y.) was first on the scene for the Ravens and salted away her sixth goal of the year, matching Kelly for the team lead.

The tie for the team scoring lead would be short-lived, as a similar play resulted in another goal for Canavan just 63 seconds later. Again a rebound lingered in front of the goal, but this time there was no scramble for the ball. Canavan was the only player in the area and immediately hammered the ball to the backboard for her seventh goal of the campaign.

SNHU broke up the shutout with just 63 seconds to play in the second half to create the 6-1 final. A defensive breakdown in the midfield led to a two-on-one for SNHU in the offensive end. Junior midfielder Kaitlyn Ramsey had the ball on the left side and Taylor made a run with her on the right side, while the duo had just sophomore back Morgan Caisse (Westminster, Mass.) and freshman goalkeeper Meaghan Williams (Salem, N.H.) to beat. As the odd-man rush approached the circle, Ramsey worked her way around Caisse, drew Williams out of the cage and slipped a pass to the waiting Taylor, who had an easy finish at the right post for her third goal of the year.

Williams finished with two saves to pick up the win (7-7) in front of the cage for Franklin Pierce. Piacitelli played the first 67:49 in net for SNHU, made five saves and took the loss (0-4). Freshman Alexis Soucy took over for the Penmen for the final 2:11 and stopped both shots on her cage over the remainder of the game.

The Ravens return to the field on Tuesday, Nov. 4, when they remain home to host Saint Michael's in a Northeast-10 Conference contest. Game time is set for 4 p.m. at Sodexo Field.

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).