SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (October 24, 2026) – A goal with seven minutes and two seconds remaining from
Tania Evans was the difference-maker in Saturday's Conference of New England victory for the Western New England field hockey team over the University of New England Nor'easters, and helped WNE lock up the No. 2 seed in the upcoming CNE Tournament, defeating UNE by a final score of 1-0.
Records:
- Western New England: 10-6, 5-1 CNE
- University of New England: 8-8, 4-2 CNE
How it Happened:
First Quarter:
- UNE had the opening shots of the contest as Riley Zielinski and Ava Lagasse had chances, but Alex Tardugno came through with a save to keep the Nor'easters from scoring.
- Western New England had a flurry of chances following the UNE spurt, as Kayla Surprenant took a shot that went just wide of the cage, while Abigail Petrini forced a save by UNE's Riley Curtin to keep the Golden Bears off the scoreboard.
- WNE carried much of the offensive play in the opening 15 minutes, putting up six shots on goal, but none could find the back of the net as Curtin came up with all six saves. The Golden Bears took five corners in the first quarter, but could not generate a goal.
Second Quarter:
- The Golden Bears earned another corner just 2:45 into the quarter, which resulted in a shot on goal by Mikayla Mrzywka, though saved again by Curtin.
- UNE began to find some offense following the corner for WNE, picking up their first corner of the game. UNE's Kate Kelso had the best offensive chances in the quarter for the Nor'easters, testing Tardugno twice in a row, but could not beat the WNE junior.
- Jenna Nigro had the final chance in the second quarter, coming up with a shot on goal, but it was saved again, keeping the game deadlocked, 0-0, after the opening 30 minutes. UNE outshot the Golden Bears 5-4 in the quarter and 3-2 on goal.
Third Quarter:
- Western New England came out fighting for the opening goal of the game to begin the third quarter as Olivia Lugo and Jenna Nigro both had chances at goal in the opening 1:45 of the frame.
- UNE picked up a corner six minutes into the frame and generated its first shot of the quarter when Ella Reeves had the chance on goal, but Tardugno made a huge save to keep the Nor'easters from scoring.
- The two teams traded chances in the final minutes of the quarter, but could not find a goal, leaving the final 15minutes to decide a winner. Western New England had the 9-1 shots advantage in the quarter and 4-1 on goal overall.
Fourth Quarter:
- Looking for the opening goal of the game, UNE had a chance early on when Kate Kelso's shot just 24 seconds into the quarter was blocked. Western New England moved down the field and picked up three corners in a row, but could not convert, seeing Mikayla Mrzywka come up with two shots on goal, both denied by Curtin.
- Western New England continued to control the pace and eventually found the back of the net, coming with 7:02 to play in the quarter. An initial shot from Abigail Petrini was saved by Curtin, but Tania Evans found a loose ball on the back post and flicked it into an open cage, giving the Golden Bears the 1-0 lead, her second goal of the season.
- UNE pressed and nearly immediately answered after a corner was taken, the Nor'easters nearly scored, but a foul inside the arc turned the ball back over to the Golden Bears. UNE had one final chance on a corner with 43 seconds to play, but a shot from Ella Reeves was denied by Alex Tardugno, who pitched another shutout on the season, helping the Golden Bears come up with the 1-0 victory.
Inside the Lines:
- Tania Evans picked up the only goal of the game, scoring for the second time this season, to lead Western New England to just its second victory over UNE all-time, and second straight on home turf.
- Alex Tardugno made six saves between the pipes for WNE, picking up her seventh shutout of the season.
- Analise Trani celebrated Senior Day by taking nine total shots in the game, the most among any field player.
- Trani and Kayla Antonelli were both honored as WNE Field Hockey's senior class prior to the game.
- UNE's Riley Curtin made 16 saves on the night for the Nor'easters.
Up Next on the Schedule:
- With today's win, Western New England earned the #2 seed in the Conference of New England Tournament following a three-way tie for the top of the conference with Endicott and Roger Williams. Based on the tiebreaker, the Golden Bears earned a first-round bye in the opening round and will host a CNE Semifinal game on Wednesday, November 4, at 7:00 PM against the winner of sixth-seeded Nichols College and third-seeded Roger Williams University.
- WNE will play its final non-conference game of the season on Wednesday, October 28 at 6:00 at Salve Regina University.
