KEENE, N.H. – The Keene State College field hockey team scored three goals in eight first half minutes to open a 3-0 advantage and eventually held off Husson University's fourth quarter comeback attempt in a 4-3 victory on Saturday afternoon at the Owl Athletic Complex.

The Owls (8-2) improved to 5-0 on their home field this season, outscoring opponents 23-9, with their toughest test to date looming on Wednesday.

Today, four different goal scorers proved to be the formula as they beat the Eagles (2-5) in the first head-to-head meeting since the first round of the NCAA tournament in 2015. 

After a slow start – where KSC's first true scoring chance did not come until a penalty corner 10:18 into the game – the Owls turned on the scoring…fast.  Meghan Daileanes broke the home team out in front with a little over two minutes to go in the first quarter, carrying from outside the top of the circle to the right as she moved inside the line before lofting a shot past Husson goalie Ella Duchette's stick side.  Just 40 seconds later, Grace Bazin rushed up the right side and set up Grace Seabury with a perfect centering feed to make it 2-0.  Those two nearly connected for another beautiful fastbreak goal in the waning seconds of the quarter, but Seabury fired wide.

Husson had the first chances of the second quarter, but Clara Gorman stopped Tessa Capozzoli at the 16:45 mark and Grace Murphy tallied yet another defensive save 33 seconds later on Capozzoli to keep it 2-0.  KSC countered three minutes later on a corner chance, which resulted in Elyse Picard inserting a pass to Belle Hemond at the top of the circle.  She then slid a pass off to her left for Emma Bazin to run on to, and the Owl first year then whipped her second of the season past Duchette.  Gorman made two saves off a Husson corner in the 27th minute to preserve KSC's 3-0 lead into the locker room.

The Owls dominated the third quarter in the shot count (12-2) and responded to an early Eagles goal 2:03 out of the break to make it 4-1 when Elle MacDonald corralled a turnover on the KSC attacking side of the field and passed into space and into the circle as Grace Bazin pursued.  The ball slid past an overcommitted Duchette, allowing Bazin to sneak behind and tap it in for her Division III-leading 18th goal of the season.  She has scored in every game, compiling 41 points in 10 contests – tying for 25th already on the single-season KSC points list.  The goal to put the Owls back up three came after a flurry of chances, with Duchette making four other stops in the previous four minutes.

Seemingly comfortably ahead, Husson made things interesting in the fourth, taking advantage of a green card on Seabury to create two corner chances, the last of which they took advantage of when Faith Tillotson scored to make it 4-2 with about 13 minutes to go.  Two defensive saves by two different defenders as well as a conventional stop by Duchette on Hemond over the next three minutes kept the Eagles within two.  Those proved to be even more important when Kyla Havey tipped home a perfect centered ball from Maddie Perkins to make it a one-goal game (4-3) with 7:26 to go.
Duchette denied Seabury and MacDonald in the 55th minute – the last two of her 11 saves – to still keep her team in it after trailing by three goals at halftime.  Husson nearly tied it with a pair of corners with three minutes to go, but their best chance off the stick of Avery Baker went wide and ticked off the post with 2:40 left.  The Owls kept possession from there to hold on and drain the clock, improving to 14-2 in their last 16 home games.

Gorman made four stops in a shutout first half for KSC in the cage before Molly Diamondstein made a pair of saves in the final 30 minutes.

Husson made three defensive saves in the game, two from Leah Pushard.

The Owls host a regionally relevant matchup against current No. 23 nationally-ranked Endicott College (7-1) on Wednesday (October 1) at 6:30 p.m. in the second of four consecutive games at home.  The Gulls host top-ranked Middlebury College on Sunday before visiting Keene.  The Owls lead the series 8-2, but lost 4-1 in Beverly last season as they were doomed by allowing three goals in the opening five minutes.  Grace Bazin made it 3-1 in the 35th minute, but KSC surrendered a Gulls goal a minute later.