DARTMOUTH, Mass. – The Keene State College women's soccer team only needed one goal to earn their first Little East Conference win of the season as
Mikayla Ryan found the back of the net in the 67th minute while Michaela DiCiccio posted her second consecutive shutout in net for the Owls to defeat the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth 1-0.
Records
- Keene State: 3-3-1 (1-1-0 LEC)
- UMass-Dartmouth: 1-5-0 (0-2-0 LEC)
How it Happened
KSC was on the attack often over the first 20 minutes of the contest as the Owls logged eight shots over the span, but of the Owls' three shots on goal of the eight, Emma Juelis saved all of them to keep the contest scoreless early. The Corsairs responded with their own offensive pressure over the next six minutes, but Michaela DiCiccio saved the two of UMD's three shots on goal for the Owls. The rest of the opening half both teams only combined for one shot on target as
Elizabeth Tschudin's third shot on goal of the contest was denied by Juelis, keeping the contest scoreless heading into halftime.
The Corsairs came out of the gates hot in the second half as they tried to take the lead 2:49 into the second, but DiCiccio once again held strong to fend Morgyn Riedl's shot off. Not too long after the Owls had a pair of shots of their own on goal again, but after a team save on
Emily O'Connell's shot,
Claire Halligan was also denied, by Juelis, as the contest moved into the 56th minute without a goal. 11 minutes later the Owls' midfield applied pressure deep in the Corsair's half where
Kaylee Cormier poked a loose ball to Tschudin, who made a move up near UMD's box. Tschudin's ensuing pass was sent out ahead to
Mikayla Ryan, who fired a shot past Juelis and into the back of the net to put the Owls up 1-0 with 23:27 remaining on her first goal of the year. Juelis bounced back by making a save on her next shot that she faced, on O'Connell a few minutes later, but the Corsairs' flipped the field and tried to draw even over the next six minutes with a pair of shots on goal where DiCiccio made another pair of saved to preserve the lead with 14 minutes left. The rest of the contest the Corsairs were unable to get a shot on goal, and it was Juelis making another save, denying Tschudin's fourth shot of the day as the Owls held on to the 1-0 win to pick up the three points in the LEC standings.
"It was a hard fought-must win on the road, and we got it done," said Owls' head coach Sarah Testo. "We needed to get in the win column in the conference and we did just that."
Inside the Box
- KSC improves to 31-2-3 in the all-time series between the two teams, going 11-0-2 in the 13 most recent matchups.
- Ryan netted her first points of the year with her game-winning goal after finishing with the second-most points (10) for the Owls a year ago in her freshman season.
- DiCiccio continues to be a key addition to the Owls as she posted her second consecutive collegiate shutout as she made five saves, as she has not allowed a goal over her last 192:33 in goal for the Owls.
- Tschudin picked up a point in her third consecutive game with her assist, as she has averaged two points per game from a pair of each goals and assists over the three most recent contests for KSC.
- The Owls had the edge on shots, 20-9, shots on goal, 9-5, and corners, 4-2 in the victory.
Up Next
Keene State returns home for their next contest as the Owls host Western New England University on Tuesday, September 22, at 7:00 PM.
UMass-Dartmouth also plays their next contest on Tuesday, September 22, but at 6:00 PM as the Corsairs host Roger Williams University.
