Keene, N.H. (September 25, 2024) – WNE traveled to Keene, N.H., for a midweek matchup with the Owls of Keene State College. Stephanie McKenna gave the Golden Bears the lead in the 31st minute with McKenna's first career Golden Bear goal. Liza Pinette doubled the lead in the 54th minute. That is how the score would stay, and the Golden Bears stayed undefeated on the season with the 2-0 win over Keene State.

Records:

• Western New England: 5-0-4 (0-0-1)
• Keene State College: 3-5-1 (0-1-0)

How it Happened:

The game began with Molly McLaughlin and Riley Andriski in net for the Golden Bears and Owls, respectively. The Golden Bears got the opportunities started with a shot wide of the mark in the 4th minute. Then, the Owls would start to make some moves and find some opportunities through a shot in the 8th minute from Elise Saab, which was saved by McLaughlin. Then, a corner kick in the 9th minute. The Golden Bears would counter with a shot, which was blocked. They then had a corner kick, as well, in the 12th minute. They could not convert. The 16th minute saw Liza Pinette test Andriski, who was able to answer the test with a save. The teams traded the ball back and forth for a little while. Then, in the 24th minute, Pinette tested Andriski once again. The result was the same. The Owls would answer with a shot blocked by the WNE defense. Then, the Golden Bears would take over. They had a shot miss wide in the 29th minute. Then, they had a corner kick in the 30th minute lead to a shot from Abby Free. Andriski saved it. Lindsay Reidy then tested Andriski in the 31st minute, which led to another save. Finally, the Golden Bears would break through. Brynn Murphy sent a high-arching ball over the defense to Stephanie McKenna, who had gotten past the defense. McKenna moved the ball to the left and then sent a left-footed shot across the face of the goal and into the bottom right corner of the goal to give the Golden Bears the 1-0 lead in the 31st minute. That was McKenna's first career Golden Bear goal! The Golden Bears continued applying pressure with a 36th-minute shot from Reidy, which Andriski saved. Then, a corner kick in the 38th minute was taken by WNE. After both teams traded the ball back and forth for a few more minutes, the first half ended. The stats for the first half showed the Golden Bears leading in shots 9-2, shots on goal 6-1, corner kicks 3-1, and fouls 3-1. The Owls had more saves, 6-1. WNE led 1-0 at the half.

The second half started with Liza Pinette having a shot saved by Andriski in the 48th minute. Then, after the ball traveled around the pitch for a few minutes, Stephanie McKenna found Liza Pinette on the left side of the pitch. Pinette dribbled down the left side, made a move around the defender, and slotted the shot into the back of the net. The Golden Bears led 2-0 in the 54th minute. The Golden Bears did not slow down. They had a shot get blocked in the 60th minute. Then, they had a corner kick in the 63rd and 64th minutes.

WNE followed those corner kicks up with a shot on goal in the 69th minute. McKenna had the shot. However, Andriski made the save. The Owls would try to get back in the game with a shot in the 77th minute, but it would whistle wide of the goal. WNE answered with two shots in the 80th minute. One of them had to be saved by Andriski and was. Then, they had another shot in the 81st minute. However, it went wide of the net. The Golden Bears had another shot saved by Andriski in the 84th minute. This shot was taken by Goodreau. They had another shot go wide in the 86th minute as they kept the pressure on through the end of the game. Andriski had to make one final save in the 89th minute to keep the score at 2-0. Ella Lupo took the shot for the Golden Bears. The game would finish shortly after that. The stat line for the game saw the Golden Bears leading in shots 19-3, shots on goal 12-1, corner kicks 5-1, and fouls 7-6. The Owls led in saves 10-1. The Golden Bears won the game 2-0.

Coach's Corner:

Head coach Kristin Hensinger was asked what Hensinger thought of the WNE 2-0 win tonight. "(Hensinger is) happy with the team performance tonight. We were able to create different opportunities offensively and finish a couple of them. We still have room for improvement, but it felt good to score a couple of goals," Hensinger replied. Hensinger was then asked how it felt to see Stephanie McKenna score a first career Golden Bear goal. "Steph works incredibly hard day in and day out, so it was awesome to see that hard work pay off with what ultimately ended up being the game-winner for us," Hensinger answered.

Stephanie McKenna was asked for a comment on the team's performance tonight, as well as how it felt to score a first-career Golden Bear goal. "We worked together really well tonight, and we stepped up to their level of physicality. Scoring tonight felt really rewarding after all the work I have put in the season," McKenna stated.

Inside the Lines:

• The Golden Bears traveled to New Hampshire for a game against Keene State College.
• 30:58 – Stephanie McKenna netted the game's first goal off an assist from Brynn Murphy. The Golden Bears led 1-0.
• 53:38 – Liza Pinette doubled the Golden Bears' lead after an assist from Stephanie McKenna. The Golden Bears led 2-0.
• Riley Andriski made ten saves and let up two goals.
• Molly McLaughlin made one save and earned the Golden Bears another shutout victory.
• The Golden Bears beat the Owls 2-0.

Up Next on the Schedule:

• WNE will travel to Wenham, Massachusetts on Saturday, September 28, 2024, at noon, for a conference matchup with Gordon College.
• Keene State will take on Eastern Connecticut State University on September 28, 2024, at 1:00 PM for their next LEC game.