Saturday started out bleak; the Owls fought the Warriors underneath a drizzling gray sky on Sept. 23.
Both teams seemed evenly matched, as both scored in the first half and then drew a tie for the remainder of the game.
The Eastern Connecticut Warriors scored the first goal nine minutes and 23 seconds into the game after pressuring the ball in front of the Owl’s net for most of that time. The Warriors struggled to keep possession, and KSC did not make it easy for them and kept stepping in to challenge the ball; both of the teams kept ping-ponging the ball back and forth to one another.
Keene State got caught up in front of the Warriors’ goal, and all it took was two passes up the field and a long kick for the sophomore from Eastern Connecticut, Katelyn Herber, after going one-on-one with KSC’s goalie, sophomore Sonia Moritz, to secure the first goal of the game.
Senior and captain Alexa Skinner brought it back for the Owls after a header the Warriors went bad. She ran up from midfield and kicked the ball, hitting the cross rail and bouncing straight down into the net, too fast for the goalie to catch. After this happened, KSC renewed its intensity. The game still ended with a 1-1 tie, but Keene ended with 12 shots on goal, while Eastern Connecticut ended with six; for KSC, six of these shots were on goal, and for ECSU, three of them were. Alexa Skinner, number 9, is someone to watch this year for the Owls. As of right now, she is leading the team in scoring four goals so far this season.
Molly Lu McKellar can be contacted
at mmckellar@kscequinox.com
