CCC SEMIFINALS: No. 2 Endicott Up-Ended By No. 3 Western New England, 3-2

BEVERLY, Mass. — The No. 2 Endicott field hockey team lost a 3-2 heartbreaker to the visiting No. 3 Western New England Golden Bears in the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) Semifinals Wednesday evening at North Field.

Junior defender Emylee Wood (Kensington, N.H.) converted the Gulls' first penalty stroke attempt of the season just 1:13 into the contest to give the Gulls an early 1-0 lead.

Freshman forward/midfielder Jessica Clifford (Auburn, Mass.) put back a rebound in traffic to tie the score in the fourth minute.

Junior forward Brittany Bushey (Pittsford, Vt.) redirected junior midfielder Madi Wood's (Bristol, Vt.) shot, but a foul was called as the ball went off a defender's foot, therefore eliminating a chance for M. Wood to record an assist, before Bushey deposited it into the cage to put Endicott up, 2-1, in the 11th minute.

Junior forward Allison Jackson (Mahopac, N.Y.) knotted the score at two apiece that held through the half as she scored off a penalty corner set play from freshman forward Madison Barron (Lebanon, Pa.) in the 20th minute.

Freshman forward Jacqueline Clark's (Auburn, Mass.) game-winner came courtesy of junior forward Brittany DeLima's (Branchville, N.J.) pass across the middle in the 60th minute.

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE

• Endicott out-shot Western New England, 27-15, including an 18-15 margin on goal.
• Endicott earned 16 penalty corners to Western New England's 10.
• The Golden Bears snapped a streak of 12 straight victories for the Gulls in head-to-head action.
• The Gulls swept the regular-season series, as Endicott came from behind to win 3-2 at Western New England on 09/28/16 and posted a 2-1 victory on 10/26/16.
• Senior goalkeeper Cheka Ventura (Lawrence, Mass.) made six saves as she fell to 11-9 overall.
• E. Wood scored her ninth goal of the season, while Bushey notched her eighth.
• E. Wood recorded her first career penalty stroke goal.
• Senior defender Emily Paladino (North Reading, Mass.) earned her team-leading fourth defensive save of the season and closed out her career with five career defensive saves, which ranks tied for eighth-most all-time.

FOR THE FOES

• Junior goalkeeper Grace Trupe (Cardiff, Calif.) improved to 10-8 on the season as she stopped 13 shots.
• DeLima registered her CCC-leading 17th assist of the season.
• Clifford recorded her fifth goal, while Jackson tallied her second.
• Clark potted her sixth goal (second game-winner).
• Barron picked up her second assist of the season.
• Junior defender Samantha Krumpholz (Florence, Mass.) and junior defender/midfielder Amber Meehan (Orange, Mass.) eached earned the first defensive save of their careers, respectively.
• Junior defender Lauren Palmateer (Coxsackie, N.Y.) earned her first defensive save of the season.

WHAT'S NEXT

Endicott (11-9) sees its 2016 season come to an end.

Western New England (10-9) will travel to Biddeford, Maine to take on the top-seeded University of New England Nor'easters on Saturday, November 5 in the CCC Championship. 

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