KEENE, N.H. – Graduate student
Kaliana Palhof (Loudon, N.H.) scored her third goal of the season but Keene State College held off Plymouth State University, 4-1, in a Little East Conference (LEC) women's soccer game at Ron Butcher Field on Wednesday night.
Things remained scoreless through the first half, but the Owls connected for a pair of goals less than a minute apart to take a 2-0 lead just over ten minutes into the second half. Palhof cut the margin in half and PSU pressed to net the equalizer, but the Owls' defense held tight. The hosts put the game out of reach with a pair of late insurance goals to account for the final score.
Plymouth State falls to 5-4-0 and 1-2-0 in the LEC, while Keene State goes to 5-4-1 and 1-1-0 in league play.
The Basics:
- Plymouth State 1, Keene State 4
- Plymouth State (5-4-0, 1-2-0 LEC)
- Keene State (5-4-1, 1-1-0 LEC)
How it Happened:
- Plymouth State had the first opportunity in the seventh minute, but a blast from junior Tess LeDuc (Marlborough, Mass.) at the corner of the box was turned aside by the Owls' goalkeeper.
- Palhof made a bid from the edge of the box to the bottom right corner in the 27th minute, but again the Keene State keeper came up big and the game would go into halftime deadlocked at 0-0.
- The hosts got on the board with a pair of goals just 57 seconds apart to surge out to a 2-0 lead.
- Palhof got into the box and fired a shot inside the right post to cut the deficit in half, 2-1, in the 69th minute.
- Palhof had a chance at the equalizer six minutes later but her shot sailed high and the Keene State goalie made a pair of saves to maintain the lead as the Panthers' offense pressured.
- The hosts added an insurance tally in the 86th minute, then put the game away with a goal with just over a minute remaining.
By the Numbers:
- LeDuc fired a team-high four shots, while Palhof had three shots in 81 minutes.
- Palhof, who scored ten goals while playing for the Owls from 2018-2021, is third on the team with three goals and six points.
- Graduate student Elena Register (Helena, Ala.) made six saves in the losing effort.
- The Panthers last topped Keene State in 2018.
Up Next:
- PSU heads to Rhode Island College for another LEC tilt on Saturday (Oct. 1) at 1:00 p.m.
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