Second Half Surge Lifts Gulls to 7-1 Victory; Game Highlighted by Three Goals in 56 Seconds

BEVERLY, Mass. – The Endicott field hockey team traveled to Salve Regina on Saturday afternoon for a Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) showdown. After being tied 1-1 at the half, five different Gulls scored goals to help lift Endicott to a 7-1 victory. Endicott improves to 14-3 (8-2 CCC) while the Seahawks fall to 11-6 (4-6 CCC).

Endicott will see the field next on Wednesday, October 29^th as they host CCC opponent Nichols at 4:00 p.m. on North Field. The Seahawks will take the field next on Wednesday as well as they host cross-town opponent and CCC foe, Roger Williams at 7:00 p.m.

The first half was controlled by the Gulls as they outshot the Seahawks 11-7. Endicott got on the board first in the opening five minutes of play as Senior Mackenzie Hurst (Gilford, N.H.) controlled a bobble in front of the cage and slipped the ball past senior goalkeeper Murphy McCann (Westerly, R.I.) for the early 1-0 lead.

Being down by one, the Seahawks were eager to tie up the game as they forced five offensive corners for the next five minutes. Finally after much effort, at the 10:48 mark senior Alexandria Rizzo (Hopedale, Mass.) blasted the ball into the back of the net off a corner play for the tie.

The remaining 25 minutes of play would be uneventful as neither side could capitalize on the offensive end as the first half ended in a stalemate.

The second half was a much different story as the Blue and Green outshot Salve Regina 23-3 while earning nine offensive corners and holding the Seahawks to zero. To start the six goal scoring spree, senior Meghan Leary (Hampton Falls, N.H.) controlled a short dish by junior Ashleigh Allen (Glastonbury, Conn.) on a corner play and took a hard shot from the top of the circle to break the tie.

Three minutes later senior Jess Linden (Stratford, Conn.) marched up the field from the defensive unit to bypass three Seahawks defenders and took a hard shot from the top of the circle to make it a two goal advantage.

With 11 minutes to go in regulation Endicott continued their offensive pressure by scoring three goals in 56 seconds. The first being from Allen as she took a short lift as Murphy was on the ground to find the back of the net. Freshman Brittany Bushey (Pittsford, Vt.) followed by scoring back to back goals. The first being a beautiful tip-in play after an initial touch by senior Amanda Glynn (Hampton, N.H.) for the 5-1 lead. 30 seconds later, Bushey went at it again after controlling a scuffle in front of the goal and finding the back of the net.

With the score set at 6-1 Endicott would not let down as they continued high offensive pressure. In the final minutes of the game senior Alyssa Clark (Gorham, Maine) came up from the sweeper position on a corner and ripped a shot from the top of the circle to tally her first goal of the season and her fourth of her career to secure the 7-1 victory.