KEENE, N.H. – The Keene State College men's lacrosse team hosted Plymouth State University for their senior day on Saturday afternoon, as the Owls looked to remain perfect in LEC play in their 2024 campaign. After a back and forth first half, PSU was able to hold off an Owl comeback attempt in the final minutes, as the Panthers held on for a 13-12 win over KSC.

Records

• Keene State: 6-6 (5-1 LEC)
• Plymouth State: 11-4 (6-1 LEC)

Postgame Interview (Coach Theriault)

How It Happened
The Owls got on the board first, 40 seconds into the contest, as Rex Maccarini put the Owls up, but only 1:09 after Maccarini's goal, Nolan Burke scored for the Panthers, to tie the game up for PSU. Owls' goalkeeper, Charlie Giuliotti, made a pair of saves in net, to prevent the Panthers from taking the lead, and with 9:44 remaining in the quarter, Jeff Wiedenfeld scored for KSC to put them back ahead, 2-1. PSU responded with a pair of goals of the next 58 seconds, as Alex Hawkom and Brady Hunt each scored a goal to put the Panthers ahead, 3-2. Three minutes later, Giacomo Tedone tied the game up for the Owls, as he scored his first goal in the past five games for the Owls. Panthers' goalkeeper, Owen McNichols saved a pair of shots from KSC soon after, but he was unable to save the next one, as Aidan Donohue caused a turnover on defense for KSC, and Colby Quiet assisted Andrew Miller for an assist on the other side of the field to put KSC up, 4-3, with 2:06 remaining in the first quarter. In the final minute of the first, PSU capitalized on an extra-man opportunity, as Burke tallied another goal for the Panthers, this time a man-up goal with 39 seconds remaining, to send the contest into the second quarter, tied 4-4.
 
PSU opened the second quarter on fire, as they scored four consecutive goals in the opening 6:49 of the quarter, with Ryan Jones scoring the first, Crosby Fay scoring the next 2, and Ryan Collins scoring a man-up goal for the final of the four that helped the Panthers double up the Owls, 8-4. KSC responded with a few goals of their own, as following a caused turnover by Tim Kelleher, Quiet picked up his first goal of the game. KSC tacked on another goal 35 seconds later, as McNichols made a save to deny Quiet and Jack Ansart collected the ground ball and fired a shot into the back of the net to pull KSC to within a pair. A caused turnover by Colby Cala on defense for KSC helped bring KSC to within a goal as Andrew Miller scored his second of the contest, now with 2:35 remaining in the half. PSU wound up netting the final goal of the opening 30 minutes of play, as Jones scored his second of the quarter with 1:26 remaining, to give the Panthers a 9-7 lead heading into the half.
 
Once again on defense, Cala caused a turnover for the Owls, which helped open the scoring on the other end of the field, as Quiet netted his second of the game to pull KSC within a goal, 5:25 into the quarter. PSU responded right back with a pair of goals over the next six minutes, as Fay and Jones each netted one more goal each to increase the Panthers' lead back to three. With 1:40 left in the quarter, Ansart was able to repeat his goal from the second, as McNichols made a save on Maccarini and Ansart picked up the ball and fired a shot past him to bring the Owls to within a pair. Giuliotti was able to make a save on a last second shot from Hunt to keep the score 11-9 for the Panthers heading into the final 15 minutes of play.
 
In the first 56 seconds of the final quarter, PSU added a pair of goals, as Aiden Renner and Fay each scored to put PSU back up four. KSC was able to get back within a pair of goals, thanks to a pair of saves from Giuliotti and goals from each Ansart (assisted by Maccarini) and Tim Souza, to bring the score to 13-11 for PSU with 4:11 remaining. As the teams traded possessions back and forth over the final few minutes, Dylan Fadale caused a turnover on defense for the Owls, which resulted in Wiedenfeld bringing KSC within a goal with only 1:31 remaining in the game. After PSU won the ensuing faceoff and called a timeout, once play resumed, Cala and Ty Cougler both caused a turnover on Hawkom. After Cala collected the ground ball and the Owls were finally able to get a timeout called, after calling for one for a while, right after the time out, Maccarini would have a good look and fire a shot, only for McNichols to make the huge save for the Panthers. After PSU had a successful clear attempt and all they had to do was run the clock out, Owls' defender, Lou Granger, was able to intercept a pass with 30 seconds remaining to give KSC one more chance to tie the game up at 13 and send it into OT. After a penalty was called on PSU to give KSC a man-up advantage with 17 seconds remaining, Ansart got a shot attempt off with just five seconds left, but it would be saved by McNichols. Although for the Owls, they would have one more opportunity, as there would be another penalty against the Panthers, and KSC would have five seconds to try to tie the game up and send it into OT. On the whistle, the KSC was able to get a quick look, but unfortunately for the Owls, Quiet's shot went wide of the net as PSU was able to hold on for the 13-12 win, despite the Owls comeback attempt and pick up their first win at the Owl Athletic Complex since April 7, 2001.
 
Inside the Crease

• With the loss, the Owls fall to 25-6 in the all-time series against the Panthers. KSC has lost to PSU in the two most recent meetings, each being one goal losses (9-8 loss in OT in 2023), after KSC had won the previous 25 straight.
• Quiet and Ansart each led the Owls with three points apiece, with Quiet logging a pair of goals and an assist, while Ansart tallied three goals.
• The Owls' defense caused 15 turnovers on the day as Cala led the way with four CT.
• PSU was able to capitalize on the Owls penalties twice, as they went 2-for-7, while KSC went 0-for-2 on their two man-up opportunities, which both came in the fourth.
• The Panthers dominated on faceoffs on the day, as they won 20, compared to just eight wins from KSC. 

 
Up Next


Keene State's next game will be their 2024 regular season home finale, as they will host Western Connecticut State University on Tuesday, April 23, at 7:00 PM.
Plymouth State will wrap up their 2024 regular season in their next contest, as they will host The University of Southern Maine on Tuesday, April 23, at 7:00 PM.