KEENE, N.H. – Junior Grace Bazin recorded her fourth hat trick of the season and sophomore Meghan Daileanes her second as the Keene State College field hockey team scored their most goals in a game in six years, routing Western Connecticut State University 10-3 on Senior Day Saturday at the Owl Athletic Complex.

Highlights
Postgame Interview (Amy Watson)
Postgame Interview (Molly Murray)

The Owls (13-3) improved to 4-0 in the conference and 8-1 at home this year, and it did not take long for the runaway to commence, as they led 4-0 less than 17 minutes into the game behind a pair of goals from Daileanes, one from Bazin, and one from Irini Stefanakos, who was one of four seniors recognized in a ceremony before the game.  Molly Murray, Hannah Wood, and student assistant coach Ashley Enis were also honored for their contributions to the program.

Western Connecticut (6-10, 1-3 LEC) has lost five of six and remained winless against KSC (0-21) in the all-time series.  Each of the last three games in the series had gone to overtime, however, with Bazin winning last year's matchup 1-0 in the extra session with a breakaway goal.

Today's meeting proved to be vastly different, as the Owls were in a helping mood with Stefanakos recording three assists and six others one.  KSC had nine as a team.
Stefanakos assisted on each of the first two goals, as Daileanes tipped home her blast from the top of the circle 3:11 in for a 1-0 lead.  Only 3:15 later, Stefanakos rushed up the middle and fired toward goal from outside the circle where WCSU goalkeeper Gracie Bomboy was far out of her cage to kick it away.  However, the ball went right to Bazin who had time and space to tally her 21st goal of the season despite the ball pinballing through traffic in front.

Leading 2-0, Keene State doubled their advantage a short time later, scoring twice in 2:09 bookending the first and second quarters.  At the 14:21 mark, Stefanakos got in the scoring column herself when Alessandra Vidal received her corner feed and passed it back to her by the near post.  Bomboy got a slight piece of it on a dive, but Stefanakos corralled and lofted it into the open cage.  Daileanes picked up her second of the day at the 16:30 mark in a play that Grace Seabury helped make.  The Owl sophomore charged into the circle up the right side and played a ball toward the cage, which fooled Bomboy who was playing for a centering pass.  A pair of Owls were behind the WCSU keeper, where Daileanes dove to tip it in for a 4-0 lead.

The Wolves would cut their deficit in half with two quick goals of their own in the 23rd and 25th minutes as Alyssa Montalvo and Kaitlyn Biase each scored, but KSC responded by getting both back in even quicker succession, scoring twice in 58 seconds with less than two minutes to go as Daileanes completed her first half hat trick at 28:44 before Bazin potted her second with 18 seconds left.  Keene State carried a 6-2 lead into halftime, outshooting WCSU 21-9.

KSC had an eight-spot on the board only ten minutes into the second half, as Murray tipped home a perfect Stefanakos pass at the 34:21 mark and Bazin completed her own hat trick with an impressive individual effort that started outside the circle before she carried herself to the doorstep of the cage and beat new Wolves keeper Jaden Kilmer.
Jennifer Erikson notched a goal and an assist over the game's final 12 minutes, including helping on Drea Defreitas' first collegiate tally at the 58:42 mark, as the Owls cracked double figures for the first time since a 10-2 drubbing of Salem State University on September 22, 2018.

Keene State finished with a 34-13 edge in shots and an 11-8 advantage in penalty corners.  Katelyn Nicotera made five stops in 45 minutes in the Owls' cage, while Bomboy stopped eight in the first half and Kilmer five in the second half for Western Connecticut.

The win keeps the Owls in first place in the Little East Conference standings, but a big league road game awaits on Tuesday (October 22) at Vermont State University Castleton (11-4, 2-0 LEC).  Start time is at 7:00 p.m.  The Spartans have won five straight and are 7-1 at home.  They have outscored WestConn and Eastern Connecticut State University 11-2 in their last two league wins.  KSC is 1-1 at Dave Wolk Stadium since joining the league, with the win coming in the 2018 Little East championship game (2-1).