PLYMOUTH, N.H. – After going 1-2 in their inaugural season against Plymouth State University, the Keene State College women's ice hockey team opened off their inaugural Little East Conference season with a win on the road over the Panthers to pick up the three points in conference play from the 2-1 win.

Records

• Keene State: 3-0 (1-0 LEC)
• Plymouth State: 2-1 (0-1 LEC)

How it Happened


The first 10 minutes of the contest was all Plymouth State as they recorded all the 16 shots over the first sixth of the game, but a pair of blocked shots by Caroline Demeo and 10 saves in net by Ai Chung, the Owls' starting goalkeeper, kept the game scoreless early on. "We faced a ton of pressure in the first 10 minutes that put us on our heels, that led to some unnecessary turnovers," said Owls' head coach Rob Morgan. Karlee Lehner saved the first three shots on goal by the Owls over the next few minutes, but with 5:38 remaining in the opening period, KSC had their first power play opportunity of the day. The Owls only recorded one shot that Lehner saved over the two-minute advantage, as KSC was unable to take advantage of the opportunity, while PSU was awarded their first power play shortly after. Chung made another pair of saves and Demeo tallied another block to keep the game scoreless in the final two minutes of the first period. "As the game went along, we saw improvement with our transition game, making better decisions with the puck," said Morgan as the game progressed.
 
The Panthers came out of the gates hot again in the second period as they had the first 13 shots over the opening 7:41 of the second period. Chung made a save on six of the shots, while Demeo, Ava Iantosca, and Emma NcNeil each blocked another. After being unable to capitalize on their first opportunity for a power play in the opening period, KSC scored on their second chance coming in the second period. The Owls' line full of five of their seven freshmen this season all contributes as Tilde Byström and Tabby Jones each picked up their first career collegiate points from as they assisted Emily Edmunds for her second goal of the year for the power play goal. Morgan described the shot emphasizing how huge that goal was for the Owls, "Scoring the first goal of the game on the PP really gave us a great lift. It was a great play by our 2nd unit and a hell of a shot from Eddy." KSC tried to tack on another goal soon after but following a save by Lehner and a shot from Edmunds hitting the pipe, PSU was able to answer back 3:32 after Edmunds' goal. Chung made two more saves before Katie Porrello scored the tying goal just past the halfway mark in the contest.
 
Chung and the Owls anchored down after the goal as Chung made four more saves and Demeo and Iantosca each blocked another shot allowing for the Owls to retake the lead just under five minutes later. Emerson Spinale and Maddie DeSouza both also recorded their first career collegiate points as they picked up assists on Tabby Jones' first career collegiate goal with 2:27 remaining in the second to retake the lead. "The 2nd goal was a great team goal that started with a clean breakout to spring Tabby in on a breakaway," said Morgan. "(Jones) has a lot of offensive upside and it showed on her goal. That line of (DeSouza), (Edmunds) and (Jones) was put together last game and it's been fun to see the chemistry they're creating." Chung made two more saves the rest of the period to go with a pair of blocked shots from Ellie Patrick to preserve the lead heading into the final 20 minutes of regulation.
 
KSC tried to add an insurance goal in the first two minutes of the final period, but Loreli Norman's shot hit the pipe just as Edmunds had earlier as the lead stayed at one for the moment. Over the next four minutes both teams had a few penalties each, but PSU nearly tied it with another goal, but Sofia Cuozzo sent a shot off the post with 15 minutes remaining. KSC had another power play opportunity shortly after, but Lehner made three saves over the two minutes to try to keep the Panthers in the contest. KSC then had their third power play of the period shortly after, but they were once again unable to capitalize since they did not have a shot on target over the two minutes. Following a pair of saves from Chung as the period started to come to a close, PSU had a power play opportunity with 2:02 remaining. In the closing minutes, Chung anchored down and made five more saves in net to complete the 35-save performance for the Owls.
 
It was the most intense game our young team has experienced thus far (including last season). Both teams really battled hard for that historical first LEC win," said Morgan. "Our blue line lugged a ton of ice and improved the defensive play throughout the game. I thought Mallory Stuart, Kenzley Goode, and Edmunds took big steps forward in their play."
 
Morgan also harped on the impressive goaltending in the win, "Our penalty kill was solid, especially the work of the forwards - some key shot blocks, and obviously the play by Chung was huge. Our best player on the ice was Chung. When you get goaltending like she gave us, we will always have a chance to win. With that being said, we need to continue to get better playing in-front of her!"
 
Inside the Crease

• Chung made 35 saves in net for the Owls as her GAA is now at .66 from just two goals allowed across the first three games of the season as she averages 21 saves per game to open her sophomore campaign.
• Four Owls tallied their first career points in the contest as nearly every skater in the program now has a collegiate point.
• Both teams struggled on the power play as KSC went 1-for-6, while PSU went 0-for-4.
• PSU outshot KSC 36-14, while also dominating on faceoffs, going 34-for-53 (64%).
• KSC improves to 2-2 in the all-time series with the Panthers with both wins coming on the road.
• Demeo had five blocked shots on the day, nearly as many as the whole PSU team combined with six, while Iantosca and Patrick each had three blocks and McNeil had the other two for the Owls.

 
Up Next
 
Keene State continues LEC play as the Owls return home for their next contest on short rest for their 2025-2026 home opener against Norwich University on Saturday, November 8, at 7:00 PM.
Plymouth State also continues LEC play as the Panthers hit on the road for their next contest, but not for a week as PSU next plays at the University of Massachusetts-Boston on Friday, November 14, 6:00 PM.