Scoreless Drought Continues as Field Hockey Falls to Saint Michael’s, 1-0 (2 OT)

RINDGE, N.H. (September 27, 2016) – In a game where the two teams had combined for seven straight hours of scoreless play coming into the contest, it would take nearly 90 minutes before either found a goal on Tuesday afternoon at Sodexo Field. Ultimately, the Franklin Pierce University field hockey team would suffer its fourth straight shutout defeat, as junior midfielder Jenna Deschaine scored the game-winning goal on a deflection in the 90th minute to give Saint Michael's a 1-0, double-overtime victory in Northeast-10 Conference play.

With the loss, Franklin Pierce falls to 2-6 (0-4 Northeast-10) and has lost six in a row, while Saint Michael's improves to 3-6 (1-3 Northeast-10). Franklin Pierce is currently mired in a scoreless streak of 357:37, stretching back to the first half against Saint Anselm on Sept. 11. For its part, Saint Michael's snapped its own scoreless streak at 243:37 with the overtime winner.

The game-winning goal was Deschaine's second score of the season and came off of the 11th and final penalty corner of the game for Saint Michael's, which enjoyed an 11-6 edge in corners. Deschaine injected the ball from the left-wing side on the play, and then made her way to an area approximately five yards in front of the left post. As she was doing so, sophomore midfielder Maddy Dobecki corralled the injection and sent the ball back towards the cage. Deschaine was able to get her stick to the shot and re-direct it past junior goalkeeper Meaghan Williams (Salem, N.H.) and into the cage to spark the celebration for the victorious Purple Knights.

Prior to the winner, the majority of the game's quality scoring chances had come in the first overtime period. Franklin Pierce had strong chances to win in both the 76th and 82nd minutes. In the 76th, senior midfielder Andrea Fahey (Hudson, Mass.) found herself with an opportunity from the middle of the circle without much defensive pressure, but put her shot just wide of the right post. In the 82nd, senior midfielder Kenady Kelly (Plymouth, N.H.) teed up a shot from the left side on a corner play, and was able to put the ball cleanly through traffic, but it missed the cage just wide of the right post.

Meanwhile, Saint Michael's had golden opportunities in both the 77th and 85th minutes before ultimately winning in the 90th. In the 77th, senior forward Carolyn Avery was sprung on a breakaway via a long pass through the midfield. Avery was met just inside the top of the circle by Williams, who charged out of her cage to smother the opportunity. In the 85th, on a corner play in the waning seconds of the first overtime, Dobecki drove a shot from the left side which went cleanly through traffic, but sailed just wide of the left post.

Williams (2-6) finished with nine saves against 11 shots on goal, with senior back Shannon O'Leary (Florence, Mass.) chipping in a defensive save as well. Senior Abigail Bowie (3-6) came up with 11 saves to pick up the victory and post her second shutout of the season for Saint Michael's. Senior forward Abby Dusha and sophomore back Claire Kondrotas added defensive saves for the Purple Knights.

The Ravens return to the field on Saturday, Oct. 1, when they travel to Pace for a Northeast-10 contest. Game time is set for 1 p.m. at Finnerty Field in Pleasantville, N.Y.

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 can do so at the Department of Athletics' online store (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu/store).