Second Half Surge Lifts Field Hockey Over Westfield, 3-1; Hurst Tallies Two Goals on the Night

BEVERLY, Mass. – The Endicott field hockey team hosted non-conference opponent Westfield State on Tuesday night. Senior Mackenzie Hurst (Gilford, N.H.) scored back to back goals in the second half to lift the Gulls to a 3-1 victory. Endicott has now won five straight games as they advance to 5-1 (1-0 CCC) while the Owls fall to 2-2 (0-1 LEC).

Endicott will see action next on Saturday, September 20^th as they travel to Western New England for a Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) showdown. The Owls will see action next as they host LEC opponents UMass. Dartmouth on Saturday as well.

The first half was controlled by the Blue and Green as they outshot their opponents 17-3 despite just scoring one goal. Westfield State got on the board in the opening two minutes after they earned a penalty corner for the first scoring opportunity of the game. Sophomore Jenelle Juskiewicz (Orange, Mass.) received a feed from junior Emily Williams (Deerfield, Mass.) and found the back of the net for the 1-0 lead.

After peppering sophomore goalkeeper Megan Fountaine (Scituate, Mass.), senior forward, Emily Sawchuck found an opportunity to find the back of the net at the 7:19 mark. Senior Alyssa Clark (Gorham, Maine) started the play as she blasted the ball from the far left side of the field to find Sawchuck hovering over the left post. Sawchuck controlled the ball made a quick move and shot the ball into the back board to rally for the 1-1 tie game.

Ending the half the Gulls ripped 17 shots while forcing Fountaine to close out the first 35 minutes of play with 11 saves as both sides entered halftime at a 1-1 stalemate.

The second half showed a more composed Endicott team who outshot their opponents 14-8. Endicott controlled the tempo for most of the 35 minutes of play and really increased pressure on the Westfield defense. Finally at the 43 minute mark, the Gulls earned a penalty corner. Junior Morgan Bresnahan (South Burlington, Vt.) inserted the ball to senior Meghan Leary (Hampton Falls, N.H.)who sent a hard ball to goal where Hurst was able to get in front and force the tip in goal. The goal would be marked as the game winner and the third goal of the season for Hurst.

The goal would not be the last for Hurst as she was hungry for more. In the 58^th minute the forward made a similar play after Sawchuck wrangled through a few Owls defenders and sent the ball across cage where Hurst was able to control the feed for her second tip in of the night. Hurst is now tied with Sawchuck on goals on the season with four. With the assist Sawchuck is now the point leader for the Blue and Green with 10 after her three point performance this evening.

Endicott worked the offensive circle for the remaining 15 minutes of play and had some stellar opportunities but just could not finish. The Blue and Green wrapped up the night with the 3-1 victory which marks the fifth straight victory for the Gulls and increases the all-time record against the Owls to 3-0 in Endicott's favor.

Senior goalkeeper Rose Bradley (Pottsdown, Pa.) earned her second straight win on the season with her five stops while her counterpart Fountaine, made an impressive 17 stops on the night.