RINDGE, N.H. (October 13, 2021) -- The Franklin Pierce University field hockey team struggled to get anything going in the first half on Wednesday evening, and a 2-0 halftime advantage would prove to be more than sufficient for the visiting Hawks of No. 8 nationally ranked Saint Anselm. The Ravens put a more cohesive effort together in the second half, but surrendered three more goals as Saint Anselm posted a 5-0 victory in the Northeast-10 Conference affair at Sodexo Field. Senior Carly LaCasse scored twice to lead the way for the Hawks.

With the loss, Franklin Pierce falls to 3-10 (1-8 NE10), while Saint Anselm improves to 10-3 (8-2 NE10).

The first quarter went scoreless, but Saint Anselm put home a pair in the second quarter to take a lead it would never relinquish. Off a 22^nd-minute corner, the Hawks worked the ball to junior Shelby Dunn on the right side of the circle. She took a drive from there, which was tipped en route by LaCasse, for the latter's sixth goal of the season.

The Ravens nearly escaped to halftime with just the 1-0 deficit, despite being outshot 15-1 in the half, but Saint Anselm struck again with just 18 seconds to play in the second period, off a giveaway from the Franklin Pierce back line. Junior Avery Tucker intercepted a cross-field pass, carried into the right side of the circle and blasted her third of the season past freshman goalkeeper Addy Araneo (Yorktown Heights, N.Y.) and inside the left post.

The shot tally would stand at 10-10 in the second half, as the Ravens got their act together, but it would be Saint Anselm which would find the half's three goals. In the 41^st minute, Dunn and LaCasse hooked up again. This time, Dunn pushed the ball towards the net from the left side. LaCasse collected it out front and put a shot away to tally her second multiple-goal game of the campaign.

Late in the 45^th, freshman Stephanie Sutton-Brown teed up a shot from the left side of the circle off a corner. Sophomore Maddie Davis was in the path of the drive and deflected it to the back of the cage for her fourth of the year, with just three seconds remaining in the third quarter. Freshman Abby Breznyak capped the scoring with just 36 seconds to play in the contest, as she tucked a rebound inside the left post for her first collegiate goal.

Araneo (3-6) finished with 11 saves against 16 shots in the losing effort, as she recorded her third straight outing of double-digit saves. Sophomore Mackenzie McConnell (7-2) stopped all four shots on her cage to tally her sixth shutout of the season.

The Ravens are on the road for three straight, beginning with a trip to Mercy on Saturday, Oct. 16. The NE10 contest is set for an 11 a.m. start in Dobbs Ferry, N.Y.