PLYMOUTH, N.H. – Junior
Morgan Cunningham (Wrentham, Mass.) scored four goals and graduate student
Megan Gaspa (Laconia, N.H.) recorded six caused turnovers as Plymouth State University held off Keene State College, 11-8, in a Little East Conference (LEC) women's lacrosse matchup at Panther Field on Wednesday afternoon.
With the win, Plymouth State clinches its 12th LEC regular season title and secures the top seed for next week's LEC Tournament.
Cunningham opened the scoring in the first minute, but the first quarter proved to be low-scoring as the Panthers held a narrow 2-1 lead after one. She bookended a 5-0 run in the second quarter with her second and third goals as the lead swelled to 7-1, though the Owls got one back late in the half.
The Panthers extended the margin in the third, outscoring Keene State 3-1 in the frame, but the Owls attempted a fourth-quarter rally. The visitors scored three straight to close the gap to 10-6 midway through the stanza before sophomore
Greta Oberacker (East Falmouth, Mass.) stemmed the momentum with her third goal of the year. Keene State added two more late, but senior
Jenna Stowell (Londonderry, N.H.) secured a key draw control and PSU ran out the clock.
Plymouth State improves to 13-2 (7-0 LEC), while the Owls drop to 11-5 (5-3 LEC).
The Basics:
- Plymouth State 11, Keene State 8
- Plymouth State (13-2, 7-0 LEC)
- Keene State (11-5, 5-3 LEC)
How it Happened:
- Cunningham got the Panthers on the board in the first minute, with senior Maddie Hunt (Littleton, Mass.) doubling the lead midway through the frame.
- The Owls responded late in the quarter to make it 2-1 after one.
- Cunningham sparked a 5-0 run in the second quarter with her second goal of the game. Hunt followed with her 57th goal of the season, and Cunningham set up senior Julia Donovan (Antrim, N.H.) while down a player.
- Stowell and Cunningham capped the surge to extend the lead to 7-1 before Keene State tallied just over a minute before halftime.
- The Owls cut it to 7-3 early in the third, but Stowell, Cunningham, and Donovan each found the net to push the advantage to 10-3 heading to the final quarter.
- Keene State rallied with three straight goals to make it 10-6 with over eight minutes remaining.
- Oberacker added an insurance goal two minutes later, and though the Owls struck twice more, PSU secured the win.
By the Numbers:
- Cunningham led all scorers with four goals and five points, adding a ground ball.
- Donovan, Hunt and Stowell contributed two goals apiece. Stowell also grabbed nine draw controls and two caused turnovers, while Hunt collected three ground balls.
- Sophomore Sammy Murphy (Harrisville, R.I.) had a pair of assists.
- Gaspa anchored the defense with six caused turnovers and four ground balls.
- PSU held a 28-9 advantage in shots on goal and won the ground ball battle 26-16.
- The Panthers have now won 12 straight against Keene State and lead the all-time series, 34-10.
Up Next:
- Plymouth State wraps up the regular season with a Senior Day clash against UMass Dartmouth on Saturday (Apr. 26) at noon.
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