STRONG FIRST HALF POWERS WOMEN’S SOCCER PAST FITCHBURG, 3-2

BOSTON, Mass. – Three goals in the opening stanza was just enough to power the Emmanuel College women's soccer team past Fitchburg State University in a closely contested 3-2 final Thursday evening at Roberto Clemente Field in Emmanuel's 2013 home-opener. The Saints notch their first win of the year to improve to 1-2 overall while the loss drops the Flacons to 0-3.

EC senior forward Lindsey Garvey (Warwick, R.I.) got the scoring started in the 17^th minute when she one-timed a ball off a cornerkick sent in by her classmate Darcey Sullivan (Dalton, Mass.) to make it a 1-0 match.

The Saints extended the lead to 2-0 when Sullivan found the back of the net for the second time this year with a well placed header at the 23:36 marker. Sophomore midfielder Katelyn Fink (Sanford, Maine) was credited with the assist after playing the lofted cross into the box that resulted in the tally.

With under three minutes left in the half, freshman forward Catherine Edmonds (Acton, Mass.) put EC on top 3-0 with her first collegiate tally when she buried a shot from just inside the 18-yard box following a through ball pass from sophomore Hannah Konicki (Milford, Conn.).

It appeared Emmanuel would carry the three-goal margin into the halftime intermission but the Falcons had other plans with a late attack starting with a monster punt from senior goalkeeper Jillian Kirouac (Leominster, Mass.) that caught the Emmanuel back line by surprise. The bounding ball was then sent deep into the Saints box and following a scrum for possession, Fitchburg senior forward Nicole Stone (Webster, Mass.) buried a shot with four seconds to play to cut the lead to 3-1 heading into the break.

The Falcons came out strong in the second frame, using the momentum from the late first half goal to take control of the action. It was only a matter of time before FSU was going to find the back of the net again and it came at the 57:48 marker following a hard Emmanuel foul in the box resulting in a Falcons penalty kick. Freshman Abbey Norden (Belchertown, Mass.) stepped up and calmly drilled the shot for her first collegiate marker to cut the lead to a goal at 3-2 with a little more than 22 minutes remaining.

Fitchburg had a few chances down the stretch to even the score at 3-all but the Saints defense withstood the heat to hold on for the 3-2 victory.

Sophomore goalkeeper Brenna Smith (Wantagh, N.Y.) earned her first win of the year making five saves between the pipes while Kirouac finished the evening with six stops.

The Saints held an 18-14 shots advantage while FSU dominated corners with a 9-3 margin.

Emmanuel returns to the pitch on Saturday, Sept. 7 when they head across the river to take on MIT at 11:00 AM while Fitchburg is now idle until Tuesday, Sept. 10 when they host Becker College at 7:00 PM in their 2013 home-opener.