Second-seeded Owls too strong for Panthers 

            KEENE, N.H. – Freshman Maggie Cahoon (Keene, N.H.) scored three times and added an assist to lead second-seeded Keene State College to a 4-0 win over seventh-seeded Plymouth State University in the quarterfinals of the Little East Conference (LEC) field hockey tournament at Owl Athletic Complex on Tuesday night.

            Keene State advances to face third-seeded WestConn in a semifinal clash on Thursday (Nov. 7), while Plymouth State ends its season with an 8-10 mark.

            The Owls came out strong, with Cahoon scoring off a penalty corner in the fifth minute. She added her second of the day with just over 30 seconds remaining in the opening quarter, before KSC tacked on a pair of insurance goals in the second half.

            The Basics:

            Plymouth State 0, Keene State 4

            Plymouth State (8-10)

            Keene State (14-7)

            How it Happened:

• Cahoon wasted little time for the Owls, scoring on the game's first penalty corner just 4:21 into play.
• Cahoon struck again off a penalty corner in the final seconds of the opening frame to give the hosts a 2-0 lead.
• PSU responded with pressure early in the second quarter. Senior Kylie Ham (Wayland, Mass.) inserted a pair of penalty corners in the 25th minute, but the first shot went wide and junior Kate McPherson (Conway, N.H.) was stoned by the Owls' goalkeeper on the second attempt.
• Junior Nina Bruno (Agawam, Mass.) pushed the deficit to 3-0 midway through the third quarter and Cahoon completed the hat trick six minutes into the fourth to account for the final score.
• The Panthers fought right to the end, firing multiple shots in the final seconds but they were unable to break through.

            Inside the Numbers:

• Junior Jess Distler (Brookfield, N.H.) made three saves for PSU, falling to 6-7 on the year, while her counterpart, junior Rachel Loseby (Hartland, Vt.) had a pair of stops for the Owls to improve to 12-6.
• McPherson led the Panthers with a pair of shots.
• KSC held an 11-5 advantage in shots and 13-5 edge in penalty corners.
• Keene State has won each of the last six LEC Tournament titles.

            Straight From the Coach's Mouth:

            "It was a hard fought game by both teams," said head coach Bonnie Lord. "Jess [Distler] was solid in goal with strong defense by Kylie [Ham] and Kate [McPherson]. We had opportunities in the circle and on corners, but couldn't capitalize against a stifling Keene defense. Tonight we did not play hard enough to win."

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