Springfield, Mass. (September 4, 2024) – The Golden Bears looked to bounce back from their loss on opening day to Wheaton College. They hosted the Wolves of Western Connecticut State University in their home opener for the 2024 season. After going down 1-0 in the second quarter, the Golden Bears rallied behind goals from Kara Edwards, Kayla Antonelli, and Sarah Johnston to snag their first win of the season.

Records:

• Western New England: 1-1 (0-0)
• Western Connecticut State University: 2-1 (0-0)

How it Happened:

The Golden Bears and Wolves took to the field Wednesday night. Ella Henry was the goalie for WNE, and Gracie Bomboy was in net for WCSU. The Golden Bears started the game on the attack. The Wolves would make moves to get the ball out of their defensive zone. However, the Golden Bears kept applying pressure. First, Kara Edwards had a shot blocked in the 5th minute. Then, Sarah Johnston had a shot saved by Bomboy in the 7th minute. That led to the ball finding Mackenna Cooke, who sent the ball at what looked like an empty goal. However, Kaitlyn Biase jumped in for a defensive save. The tenth minute saw the Golden Bears earn a penalty corner. That led to a Haley Kaczka shot that was saved by Bomboy. The Golden Bears would add more pressure after that, but no major opportunities would arise. After the first quarter, shots were 4-0 in favor of the Golden Bears. WNE also led in penalty corners 1-0. WCSU led in saves 3-0. The game was tied 0-0 after the first.

The Golden Bears continued with the pressure in the second quarter. Shots by Johnston and Olyvia Whyte sailed wide of the net. Whyte then had a shot saved by Bomboy in the 22nd minute of game time. Kayla Antonelli had a shot blocked, and after a penalty corner from Grace Miguel, Analise Trani sent a shot wide of the goal. Grace Miguel took another penalty corner in the 26th minute. However, the shot from Haley Kaczka after the corner was saved again by Bomboy. With just over a minute left in the half, the Wolves made a run down towards the Golden Bear goal. A penalty corner was called with 1:16 left in the half. That led to Alyssa Montalvo taking the corner. The ball found Reilly Schmidt, who sent it to Reagan Schoen, who sent the ball crashing into the back of the goal. The Wolves led 1-0 with 1:06 left in the half. The Golden Bears earned a penalty corner with thirty-five seconds left. Tessa Ebreo took the corner. That led to a shot by Cooke getting blocked, and that is how the first half would end. WNE led in shots 11-1 and penalty corners 4-1 at the end of the first half. WCSU led 5-0 in saves at the end of the half. WCSU also had the 1-0 lead after two quarters of play.

The Golden Bears came out fast to start the half. They earned a penalty corner just twelve seconds into the half. Johnston would have a shot saved 0:56 into the second half. That led to a penalty corner, which led to a Haley Kaczka shot and a Sarah Johnston shot being saved by Bomboy. Analise Trani then had a shot go wide, and a shot get saved by Bomboy. The ball would eventually find Kameron Marando, who found Kara Edwards in front of the net. Edwards spun and sent a shot past Bomboy to tie the game at one goal apiece, 4:52 into the second half. The Golden Bears did not stop with the pressure. Tania Evans had a shot saved. Then, after a penalty corner taken by Tessa Ebreo, Ebreo would get the ball back and have a shot blocked. The Wolves made a run down to the Golden Bear defensive zone, and with 5:26 left in the third quarter, Miah Ruiz sent a shot at Ella Henry, who made the save. The ball went back and forth for a little before one last shot from Paige Remington. It was blocked, and the game was tied 1-1 going into the final quarter of play. The third saw the Golden Bears outshoot the Wolves 9-1 and earn more penalty corners 3-0. WCSU led in saves 5-1.

That scoreline would not stay that way for long. Mackenna Cooke had a shot saved by Bomboy before the Wolves earned themselves a penalty corner. Then, Kayla Antonelli started a run towards the Wolves' goal. The ball found its way down the right side of the field. Tanya Evans sent a quick pass across the face of the goal to Antonelli, who finished the play by sending the ball into the goal to give the Golden Bears the 2-1 lead with 12:52 remaining in the game. Just over two minutes later, Tessa Ebreo took a penalty corner for WNE. It went to Johnston, who had a shot saved by Bomboy. Haley Kaczka would then send the ball in front of the goal, and Johnston was there to swipe at the ball and send it into the Wolves' goal. The Golden Bears led 3-1. After that, the Golden Bears had a shot from Johnston saved by Bomboy. Then, after Amanda Burns took a penalty corner, Analise Trani had a shot blocked before the game finished. The Golden Bears won 3-1 after trailing after the first half of play. The final stat line saw the Golden Bears lead in shots 26-2, shots on goal 16-2, and penalty corners 9-2. The Wolves led 13-1 in saves.

After the game, the head coach of the Field Hockey team, Kyle Lyons, and goal-scorers Kayla Antonelli and Kara Edwards were interviewed. Coach Lyons was asked what the message was with the team trailing 1-0 at halftime. "The message was that we were dominating and outstatting the other team, but to finish, to capitalize on our opportunities. We were in their end a lot and were knocking on the door, but we had to have the extra bite or grit to finish the ball and get it in the back of the net," Lyons replied. Antonelli was asked about what was going through Antonelli's mind when starting the run that led to the game-winning goal. "Our team had a fast break off of a corner from the other team, and our team is just very good at sending entry balls into the circle, and we just capitalized on the opportunity, and we were able to get one into the back of the net," Antonelli stated. Edwards was asked to talk about the play that led to the game-tying goal and how good that goal felt. "I just knew that going into the second half, we had to score. Then, going from center-mid to center-forward, I knew that my job was to execute a goal, and that's what I wanted to do. So, getting the ball next to the goalie and then having the opportunity to shoot, I took it, and then thankfully it went in," Edwards noted.

Inside the Lines:

• The Golden Bears welcomed the Wolves of Western Connecticut State University to town for their 2024 home opener.
• Reagan Schoen opened the scoring with a goal with 1:06 left in the first half. Reilly Schmidt was credited with the assist. The Wolves led 1-0.
• Kara Edwards notched the game-tying goal 4:52 into the third quarter. Kameron Marando had the assist. The game was tied 1-1.
• Kayla Antonelli scored the game-winning goal with 7:52 left in the game. Tania Evans was credited with the assist. The Golden Bears led 2-1.
• Sarah Johnston added to the Golden Bear lead with a goal with 5:36 left in the game. Haley Kaczka had the assist. The Golden Bears extended the lead to 3-1.
• Gracie Bomboy made 12 saves and gave up three goals for the Wolves.
• Ella Henry made one save and let up one goal to earn the first WNE win of the 2024 season.
• The Golden Bears won the game 3-1.

Up Next on the Schedule:

• WNE travels to Johnson & Wales University on Saturday, September 7, 2024, at 3:00 PM for their next game.
• Western Connecticut State hosts Springfield College on Saturday, September 7, 2024, at 4:00 PM for their first home game of the season.