Field Hockey Drops Regular-Season Finale at No. 9 SNHU, 2-0

MANCHESTER, N.H. (November 2, 2019) -- On Saturday afternoon, the Franklin Pierce University field hockey team took to the road for its final regular-season game of the year. Junior goaltender Olivia Barnes (Greenwich, N.Y.) collected nine saves, but the offense was unable to generate much of anything at the other end, as the Ravens suffered a 2-0 loss on the road against No. 9 nationally ranked Southern New Hampshire in Northeast-10 Conference play. 

With the loss, the Ravens fall to 8-10 (7-7 NE10), while SNHU improves to 15-3 (8-1 NE10) and has won nine in a row. Both teams have qualified for next week's NE10 Championship, which will begin with the quarterfinal round on Tuesday, Nov. 5. Eighth-seeded Franklin Pierce will travel to top seed and No. 4 Saint Anselm for a 7 p.m. game, while third-seeded SNHU will host sixth-seeded Bentley at 4 p.m.

The first goal of the game came just 1:43 into the first quarter. Freshman forward Lisa Hagel found herself alone in the middle of the scoring circle off of a corner opportunity. Senior forward Laura van der Doorne had started the play by sending it to a teammate at the edge of the scoring circle. The ball then found its way onto Hagel's stick and she sent the ball into the bottom-right corner of the goal for her 13^th score of the season.

The second quarter and half of the third would stay scoreless with lots of midfield play, before the Penmen were able to strike again in the 38^th minute. Van der Doorne carried the ball almost the entire length of the field before dropping it back for junior forward Hélène Servais. Servais would return the ball to van der Doorne in the scoring circle for an opportunity alone against Barnes. Van der Doorne got under the ball and scooped it into the top-left corner of the net to double the lead with her team-leading 14^th goal of the campaign.

The score would remain 2-0 for the remainder of the game. The Ravens were unable to muster much offense, as they recorded only three shot attempts throughout the game, none of which were on goal. SNHU posted advantages of 18-3 in shot attempts, 12-0 in shots on goal and 11-2 in penalty corners.

Barnes (7-10) made nine saves against 11 shots on goal and suffered the loss for Franklin Pierce, while senior back Jessica Strassburg (Longmeadow, Mass.) added a defensive save along the way. In the SNHU net, graduate student Melanie Rennie (15-3) did not have to make a save while recording her fourth shutout of the season.

For more information on Franklin Pierce Athletics, please visit the official website of Franklin Pierce Athletics (https://www.fpuravens.com). Also be sure to follow the Ravens through the Department of Athletics' official Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/FranklinPierceRavens), its YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/franklinpiercesports) and its Twitter feed (http://twitter.com/FPUathletics). Fans wishing to purchase Franklin Pierce field hockey apparel can do so at the Department of Athletics' brand new online store (https://www.shopfpuravens.com).