BEVERLY, MASS. — The Endicott field hockey team fell, 3-1, to the University of New England Nor'easters in Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) action Wednesday night at Hempstead Stadium.
Junior forward Brittany Bushey (Pittsford, Vt.) gave Endicott a 1-0 lead with a tally in the 15th minute from sophomore forward Sophia Cogliano (Saugus, Mass.) as she lifted a ball to the back right of the cage from the top of the circle.
UNE knotted the score as junior forward Alex Staples (Alfred, Maine) connected on a rebounded shot in the 32nd minute.
The Nor'easters took the lead for good going into the half, up 2-1, as senior forward Nicole Matarozzo (Wolfeboro, N.H.) deposited into the left corner of the cage off a feed from junior forward Vonde Saunders (Center Conway, N.H.) with just 49 seconds remaining in the first stanza.
Matarozzo struck again in the 61st minute with an insurance goal from first-year forward Kendra MacDonald (Lebanon, N.H.) to help the Nor'easters remain unbeaten in conference play.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- Today's game saw the Gulls lose their seventh straight game at the hands of the Nor'easters, as UNE leads the all-time series, 13-11, dating back to the 2003 season.
- Endicott is now 7-3 all-time at North Field against UNE.
- Senior goalkeeper Cheka Ventura (Lawrence, Mass.) made nine saves as she fell to 7-7 on the season (6-2 CCC).
- Bushey recorded her third goal of the season, while Cogliano tallied her fifth assist on the year.
- Junior midfielder Samantha Crowley (Leicester, Mass.) registered her second defensive save of the season, while sophomore defender Maggie O'Reilly (Cheshire, Conn.) earned her first career defensive save.
FOR THE FOES
- The Nor'easters out-shot the Gulls, 23-9, including a 14-7 margin on goal.
- UNE earned 15 penalty corners to Endicott's nine.
- Senior goalkeeper Holly Smith (Peabody, Mass.) stopped six shots to improve her record to 12-2 (7-0 CCC) on the year.
- Matarozzo scored her 10th and 11th goals of the season (second most on the team behind Saunders).
- Staples scored her third goal of the season.
- Saunders picked up her fifth assist of the season, while MacDonald tallied her first career helper.
NOTES
- The Gulls have lost the last 10 of 11 meetings between the two teams.
- UNE swept the 2016 regular-season series, as the Nor'easters also won the most recent meeting before tonight, 4-1 in Biddeford, Maine on 09/20/16.
WHAT'S NEXT
Endicott (7-7, 6-2 CCC) travels to Middletown, R.I. to face Salve Regina on Saturday, October 15 at 5:00 p.m.
UNE (12-2, 7-0 CCC) hosts Roger Williams on Saturday, October 15 at 1:00 p.m. For the latest on Endicott Athletics, follow the Gulls on social media on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.
