KEENE, N.H. - Erica Chareth scored off a perfect feed from Ally McCall just 17 seconds into the second overtime to give the Keene State College field hockey team a back-and-forth 4-3 win over Smith College in non-conference action Wednesday night at Owl Athletic Complex.

Records

• Keene State:  13-6
• Smith:  3-14

How It Happened

In a game that saw Keene State lead 1-0, trail 2-1 and lead 3-2 before the Pioneers tied it once more, it was the Owls who had the last laugh, handing Smith their seventh one-goal loss and fourth overtime loss of the season.

The contest saw flurries of scoring, with each team answering each other not even 10 minutes after the other scored.  KSC was on the board very quickly, as the two top scorers connected, with Nina Bruno finishing off Kayla Klein's pass for a 1-0 lead just 2:39 in.  The Pioneers nearly tied it not even two minutes later, but McCall swept out Bryn Murray's shot to keep the Owls in front for the moment.  Smith did break through before the quarter expired, as Maddie Ryan found the back of the cage in the 12th minute to tie it.  It stayed 1-1 through halftime as neither team scored in the second frame, but KSC dominated the second 15 minutes, outshooting the visitors 5-1.  Taylor Wells made a pair of saves, and the post also helped her, keeping out Kelsey Roberts' chance right before the horn.

Smith took their first lead of the contest not even seven minutes into the second half when Grace Moorehead scored, but as mentioned before, it did not last long, with Klein's second penalty stroke in a week evening the game at 2-2 at the 43:05 mark.  KSC jumped back ahead with their second goal in less than three minutes of game time, and just 1:03 into the final quarter, when Bruno found her second of the night and 18th of the season from Roberts.  Trailing 3-2, the Pioneers utilized a corner to forge another tie.  Morgan Handwerger began the opportunity, feeding it into the top of the circle where Murray eventually trickled the ball toward the right side, finding Handwerger, who was in front and scored to make it 3-3.

The chances slowed from there, with neither team recording a shot over the final 6:49 of regulation, forcing KSC into their third overtime game of the year.  In the extra time, Bruno nearly won it in the 66th minute, but Wells made a save.  The Owl junior's attempt 26 seconds later went wide.  Keene State also had a corner chance at the 68:39 mark, but nothing came of it and forced another 10-minute OT, which was over in the blink of an eye.  KSC started with the ball and McCall carried the ball forward before threading the needle to Chareth, who finished it off for the winner at 70:17.

Keene State had all three shots in overtime, and outshot Smith, whose last shot came on Handwerger's goal, 15-11 overall.

Rachel Loseby (11-6) got the win in the KSC cage, making one save.  Wells (0-3) stopped five shots for Smith.

Penalty Strokes

• KSC has won 12 of 15 meetings all-time between the two teams.
• Bruno has now edged in front of Klein for the team lead in goals (18-17).  The duo has combined for 35 goals and 83 points on the season.
• McCall notched a point for the second straight game.

Up Next

• Keene State closes the regular season with a home matchup against No. 16 Babson College on Saturday, November 2 at 12:00 pm.  That day, KSC will honor seniors Chareth, McCall, Roberts, Hailey Beaupre, and Jordan LaRaus for their contributions to the program.
• Smith wraps up their campaign at Clark University on the same day at 1:30 pm.