Panthers fall in key Little East match-up

            BOSTON, Mass. – Freshman Samantha Cristoforo (Rockland, Mass.) scored the only goal of the game 11 minutes into the first half Saturday afternoon to lift the University of Massachusetts Boston women's soccer team to a 1-0 victory over Plymouth State University at the Clark Athletic Center field.

            Cristoforo blasted a shot from about 25 yards out from the left hand side of the net, beating the keeper high for her third goal of the season.  UMB improves to 10-4-3 overall and 3-3 in LEC play, while the Panthers drop to 7-9 overall and 2-4 in the conference.

            The Panthers had two strong scoring opportunities late in the first half but failed to convert. Junior Sam Laliberte (Concord, NH) headed a shot on net that went past the goalie with eight minutes remaining but sophomore defender Anna O'Donoghue (Swansea, Mass.) was on the goal line and cleared the shot before it broke the plane.  Freshman Carol Messler (Durham, N.H.) had a breakaway for the Panthers moments later on the left wing but missed the net with her left-footed attempt.

            Neither team was able to score in the second half despite eight shots for UMB and six for PSU.  The Beacons finished with a 17-11 margin in shots.  Freshman goalkeeper Katie Coscia (Pittsfield, Mass.) ended up with six saves for the Beacons while junior Courtney Lins (Fremont, N.H.) recorded seven saves for Plymouth State.

            UMass Boston will be back in action on Tuesday when it travels to Framingham State for a 3:00 p.m. contest while the Panthers are idle until next Saturday when they host Eastern Connecticut on the final day of LEC regular season action.  It will also be Senior Day at Panther Field (1:00 p.m.). 

 (Courtesy of UMass Boston Sports Information) 

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