No. 1 Montclair State 6, Cortland State 3
MONTCLAIR, N.J. -- Sophomore forward Maura Johnston collected her first career hat trick as top-ranked Montclair State used a five-goal first-half outburst en route to a 6-3 win against 15th-ranked Cortland State at Sprague Field on Saturday.
Senior midfielder Stephanie Lewis added a goal and assist as the Red Hawks remained unbeaten at 8-0 while winning their 20th consecutive home contest. MSU also captured its 23rd consecutive regular-season victory and won for the 30th time in its last 32 contests.
Freshman forward Gabrielle Stein had two goals for the Red Dragons (3-2), who dropped their second consecutive game to a ranked opponent.
Jillian Vogl gave Cortland an early lead at the 5:17 mark. It was the first deficit of the season for Montclair State, which allowed a season-high three goals after giving up just two in its first seven contests.
MSU answered quickly knotting the game on a penalty stroke by Lewis 68 seconds later, which ignited a five-goal run by the Red Hawks. Freshman Gianna Moglino put Montclair in front as she knocked in a loose ball in front of the cage and Johnston made it 3-1 with 14 minutes left tapping in a pass from Brooke Hullings.
Johnston would score again at 29:11 of the period banging in a rebound and Montclair scored again 58 seconds later on a goal by Danielle Butrico for the 5-1 lead at the break.
Cortland battled back in the second half as Stein scored 6:09 into the period and again at 52:29 giving the Red Dragons some momentum as the lead closed to 5-3. But Johnston put to rest any hopes of a Cortland comeback with her third goal at 60:35 tipping in a shot by Abby Erler.
No. 3 Salisbury 5, Elizabethtown 1
SALISBURY, Md. -- Salisbury claimed a 5-1 win against Elizabethtown on Saturday afternoon, outscoring the Blue Jays 4-0 in the second half, including a hat trick by junior Mallory Elliott.
The teams played nearly even in the first half, with Salisbury (5-1) holding a narrow 10-7 edge in shots. The Blue Jays got on the board first, scoring a little more than three minutes into the contest on a goal by Taylor Alwine.
Courtney Jantzen tied the game a little more than 10 minutes later and the score remained that way through halftime.
Elliott got the first of her three goals just two minutes into the second half. Sophomore Samantha Johnson carried the ball into the right side of the circle, along the end line before putting the ball in front for Elliott. Then Elliot took a sweeping swing at the ball, popping it into the top-left corner of the cage for a 2-1 lead.
It took just 29 seconds for the insurance tally from senior Emily Voshell, who finished an assist from classmate Jessica Seay, prompting a quick timeout from Elizabethtown (3-3).
Elliott would be responsible for the remainder of the scoring, putting in her second and third goals exactly two minutes apart.
No. 8 Bowdoin 4, No. 4 Middlebury 2
BRUNSWICK, Maine -- Bowdoin scored three second-half goals to knock off previously undefeated Middlebury 4-2 in the first Polar Bear victory against the Panthers since the 2011 NESCAC Championship.
The eighth-ranked Polar Bears (4-1, 2-1 NESCAC) win against the fourth-ranked Panthers (3-1, 2-1 NESCAC) extended Bowdoin's home win streak to 35 consecutive games. Middlebury's previous three wins against Bowdoin included an NCAA tournament victory in 2011, a regular-season matchup in 2012 and the 2012 NESCAC Finals.
Bowdoin's Rachel Kennedy netted the first goal of the game 9:02 into the opening half. Katie Riley, who tallied three assists for the Polar Bears, shoveled a pass toward the right post where Kennedy redirected the ball to put Bowdoin up 1-0.
The two teams played another 15 minutes of scoreless field hockey until Middlebury earned two consecutive penalty corners. Alyssa Dimalo inserted the ball to Elinore O'Brien who controlled the ball with a clean stick stop at the top of the circle before Catherine Fowler stepped up with a hard drive to tie the game at 1-1.
Bowdoin capitalized on a penalty stroke seven minutes into the second half as Colleen Finnerty lined up with Middlebury goalie Cassie Coash. Finnerty sent a hard shot to the upper right corner beyond the reach of Coash's blacker to put Bowdoin up 2-1.
The Panthers tied the score with nine minutes remaining as Katherine Theiss posted up on the right side to knock the ball past Bowdoin goalie Hannah Gartner. Only seconds elapsed as the Polar Bears turned around with their third goal of the game. Riley carried the ball down the wing toward Middlebury's end line where she made a low cross-cage pass to Kimmie Ganong on the left post. Bowdoin doubled its lead with 4:26 remaining off another Riley to Kennedy connection.
No. 6 Christopher Newport 3, Eastern Mennonite 0
NEWPORT NEWS, Va. -- Behind a pair of goals by Lauren Cheatham and another outstanding defensive effort, sixth-ranked Christopher Newport rolled to its eighth consecutive victory with a 3-0 win against Eastern Mennonite on Saturday afternoon at Captains Turf Field.
During the game, Cheatham and Belle Tunstall continued to pace the CNU attack as the two standouts combined for all three goals. Shelby Judkins also added an assist during the contest, while Jordan Snider was the star on defense as the senior made two crucial stops to help seal the squad's fourth shutout of the year.
With the victory, Christopher Newport improves to 8-0 on the season, which stands as the team's finest start in program history. Eastern Mennonite slips to 0-7 with Saturday's setback.
No. 7 Franklin & Marshall 2, Ursinus 1
COLLEGEVILLE, Pa. -- Franklin & Marshall remained unbeaten with a 2-1 triumph against Ursinus on Saturday in a key early season Centennial Conference matchup. The Diplomats (6-0, 2-0 CC) have now won three consecutive against the Bears (3-2, 2-1 CC).
F&M jumped on top 10 minutes into the contest on a penalty stroke opportunity. Mallory Gibson made the most of the penalty shot for the Diplomats, finding the back of the cage for her first career score to give F&M a 1-0 edge.
Just before halftime, Katie Cecere notched her third goal of the year to push the Diplomats out to a 2-0 advantage heading into the intermission.
The Bears cut the deficit in half in the 50th minute as Megan Keenan buried a chance in front of goal following Avery Koep's save on a shot from Jenna Stover, putting Ursinus within striking distance down the stretch.
Koep tallied a season-high eight saves in the victory, while Bears goalkeeper Danielle DeSpirito managed one save in the loss.
No. 9 William Smith 5, Manhattanville 4
GENEVA, N.Y. -- William Smith survived a wild opener in the William Smith Classic. The Herons twice rallied from a goal down to outlast visiting Manhattanville College 5-4 on McCooey Field on Saturday.
Senior Margaret McConnell scored a pair of goals, including the game-winner on a penalty stroke in the 65th minute to pace William Smith (6-0). Senior Taylor Cappello added a goal and an assist while senior Melanie O'Connor and sophomore Cory Connelly also hit the back on the cage. First-year goalie Biz Chirco played the final 24:33 without allowing a goal, turning back three shots for her first collegiate win.
First-year Bregje Smits and senior Julia Esposito each posted a goal and an assist for the Valiants (5-3). Senior goalie Amy Hilton turned back 11 of the 16 shots she faced.
William Smith grabbed the early lead when senior Amy David completed on a long lead pass to Connolly in the center of the circle. Connolly, a transfer from UMass-Dartmouth, fired home her first Heron goal in the 12th minute.
Esposito, assisted by Smits, evened the match in the 25th minute and the visitors took their first lead in the 32nd minute on senior Amanda DeChent's team-leading 17th goal.
William Smith needed only 1:14 to tie the match when Cappello fed O'Connor, who fired in her fifth goal of the season. Four minutes later, McConnell received a pass from senior Caitlin Moran and notched her first goal of the day.
The Vailants surged back in the lead with two quick goals of their own. Sharon Konfederak converted a penalty stroke in the 42nd minute to tie the match followed by Smits goal, set up by Esposito, in the 46th minute to take a 4-3 lead.
Cappello set the stage for McConnell's game-winner when she finished off a scramble in front of the goal, batting home a rebound in the 55th minute.
