FITCHBURG, Mass. – Grace Seabury recorded the first hat trick of her collegiate career and Grace Bazin added two goals of her own as the Keene State College field hockey team stomped winless Fitchburg State on Saturday, winning 7-2 in non-conference action at Elliot Field.

KSC (5-0) had four different goal scorers and continued to display more offensive depth this season, with five people having recorded multiple goals over the opening five games.
The Owls dominated the action, outshooting Fitchburg (0-5) 33-8 including 28-6 on goal as they won for the 25th time in 28 games in the series.  If it were not for a combined 21 saves by keepers Isabella Corcoran (12 saves) and Jenna Morse (9 saves) KSC could have tacked on even more to what was already a season-high in goals in a game.  The Owls have now outscored their first five opponents by a combined 22-3 margin.

Meghan Daileanes, an emerging offensive threat, helped get Keene State on the board right away just 1:21 in as the visitors benefitted from another lightning quick start, taking a two-goal advantage in just 7:10 as Seabury tallied the first of her three.  Just two minutes into the second quarter, KSC had four on the board as Irini Stefanakos and Bazin found the back of the cage less than four minutes apart bookending the quarter break.  Fitchburg hung around somewhat despite being thoroughly outshot, getting to within 4-2 at the break as Olivia Narkevicius scored with 1:39 left in the second quarter.

The Falcons would get no closer in the final 30 minutes as KSC clamped down, allowing only two shots while having a 19-2 edge in that category.  The visitors would also produce three more goals, with Seabury completing her hat trick thanks to goals in the 41st minute and with 33 seconds to go.  Bazin scored her second of the contest just 45 seconds into the fourth quarter off a feed from Megan Goodwin to make it 6-2.

"We were fortunate to have our offense clicking tonight," said KSC head coach Amy Watson, who is now 12 wins away from 500 for her career.  "We struggled defensively in the first half and gave up a couple goals on costly mistakes.  In the second half we improved and were able to widen the gap."

Clara Gorman finished with a pair of saves while playing the first half in the KSC cage.  First year Katelyn Nicotera stopped the only two shots that came her way in the final 30 minutes.

There are currently only five active field hockey coaches across all NCAA divisions with 500 victories, with Watson looking to become the sixth.  The Owls have her on her way to the milestone after starting 5-0 for the first time since 2018.