Field Hockey Nabs First GNAC Win, Downs Mount Ida 6-3

NEWTON, Mass. – After falling behind by three scores, Mount Ida College twice got to within a one goal deficit on Saturday afternoon, but were unable to pull even with Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) field hockey foes Anna Maria, and eventual dropped a 6-3 decision to the AMCATS at Alumni Field.

Each team was looking for their first conference win in the first ever meeting between the two programs.

Junior Kylie Dalbec (Portland, Maine) scored a hat-trick for the visiting AMCATS (5-6, 1-2 GNAC), who outshot Mount Ida 21-8 and forced 11 saves out of Mustangs senior keeper Brenna Santos (E. Falmouth, Mass.).

Freshman Lexi Minicucci (Westfield, Mass.) notched a goal and an assist for the Mustangs, who fall to 3-5 (0-3 GNAC).

Dalbec scored two of the first three goals, sandwiched around a marker by Kaitlyn Moran (Leicester, Mass.), who netted twice for Anna Maria, as the AMCATS took a 3-0 lead 21:06 into the contest after more than 17 minutes of scoreless play.

Freshmen Emily Salls (Springvale, Maine) and Ashley Tice (South Berwick, Maine) helped to bring Mount Ida within a goal under the half-hour mark. Salls took a feed from Danielle Townsley (Greenfield, Mass.) in the 23^rd minute for her second goal of the season, while Minicucci fired a hard pass six minutes later that Tice got on the end of for her fourth goal of the year.

Moran completed her double with less than a minute before halftime, sending the visitors into the break with the momentum, and again a two-goal cushion. That play was set up by a penalty corner, of which Anna Maria had a 12-10 edge, including a 5-3 first half advantage.

Mount Ida again inched within a goal when Minicucci brought a penalty corner into the circle and fired past freshman keeper Bryanna Tobin (Deep River, Conn.), who made three stops to improve to 2-0 on the year.

Dalbac and junior Kayla Lapierre (Worcester, Mass.), however, were determined to stop any Mount Ida comeback attempt again. Three and a half minutes after Minicucci's marker, Lapierre found Dalbec on a three on zero fast break, and Dalbec juked out Santos, finishing with a back-hand flourish.

Lapierre was on the other end of a pass from Dalbec with five minutes to play and she batted a ball out of the air and into the back of the net to tally her fourth goal of the season and complete the scoring.

The Mustangs will take the next week off to prepare for a Friday night non-conference matchup with Elms on October 3^rd. That game is slated for 7:00 pm at Alumni Field.

Anna Maria travels to Bridgewater State a day earlier at the same-time for an out of conference game of their own.

Courtesy of Mount Ida Sports Information