Eastbayri.com

PROVIDENCE — Senior forward Sam Laliberte (Concord, NH) notched a pair of goals for Plymouth State as the Panthers knocked off Rhode Island College, 5-2, and locked up a spot in the upcoming 2011 Little East Conference Women’s Soccer Tournament on Saturday afternoon at the RIC Soccer Field.

After trailing, 2-0, PSU (5-10, 2-4 LEC) scored five unanswered goals and outshot RIC (2-14, 0-6 LEC), 19-0, in the second half en route to the league victory on the road.

The Anchorwomen drew first blood in just the fifth minute of action as sophomore midfielder Stephanie Choiniere (Hope, RI) found freshman Danielle Peloquin (Pawtucket, RI) streaking towards the box. Peloquin took the pass, split the defense and ripped a shot past senior goalkeeper Angelina LaBroad (Hampton, NH) for her fourth goal of the season. It was the first time since Sept. 3 that Rhode Island College had held a lead.

Rhode Island College increased its advantage to 2-0 in the 20th minute when Peloquin took a pass from senior midfielder Jenna Childs (Cranston, RI) and dished it to sophomore forward Lauren Maisano (Bristol, RI) just outside the box. Maisano crossed up the defender and blasted a shot into the top left corner of the net for her team-leading sixth goal of the year.

The Panthers responded in the 25th minute as senior defender Katie Lozano (Woolwich, ME) raced up the sideline and fed senior forward Sammi Jo Saltalamacchia (Sandown, NH) just outside the box. Saltalamacchia drove towards the net and while along the goal line, slid the ball out front to Laliberte, who popped it up over the head of freshman netminder Audrey Maia (Norton, MA) to trim the deficit to one.

Plymouth State knotted the game at two in the 39th minute after RIC failed to clear on a corner kick by the Panthers. Sophomore midfielder Anna Lozano (Woolwich, ME) snagged the loose ball and launched a shot past Maia from the top of the box for her second goal of the season.

The Panthers roared out of the halftime break, immediately taking the lead on a goal from Saltalamacchia in the 48th minute. She received the pass from sophomore forward Cassie Graham (Foster, RI) in the middle of the box and fired a shot past Maia for her team-leading fifth goal of the season.

PSU continued to roll in the final half as freshman forward Kate Nixon (Wakefield, MA) pounced on a rebound and slipped one past Maia to make it a 4-2 ballgame. Plymouth State added some more insurance in the 67th minute on Laliberte’s second goal of the game. Dating back to last season’s meeting, Laliberte now has six goals in her last two contests against RIC.

Maia (0-5) made a career-high 13 saves in net for the Anchorwomen, while LaBroad (4-9) stopped four shots for PSU.

Plymouth State outshot RIC, 34-7, in the game and also held the advantage in corner kicks, 7-5.

In upcoming action, Rhode Island College will play its final home game of the 2011 season when the Anchorwomen host Lasell on Wednesday, Oct. 26 (4 p.m.).

RWU Women win

The Roger Williams University Women’s Soccer team rolled to a 3-0 win over Gordon College in the team’s homecoming game Saturday afternoon.

The Hawks have been rolling as of late. The win improved the Hawks to 6-1-0 in their last seven games including five straight victories.

The Hawks honored their graduating seniors before the game. Defender Taryn Roussel (Ivoryton, Conn.), midfielder Alexa Maher (Hopewell, N.J.), midfielder Noelle Marston (Kingston, Mass.), forward Laurin Pendleton (Southwick, Mass.), forward Katie Fusaro (Hopkinton, Mass.), defender Kristen Metcalf (Londonderry, N.H.), midfielder Devon Leighton (Scarborough, Maine), and defender Michelle Meagher (Sudbury, Mass.) were all honored in front of their parents, fellow teammates, and a hometown Roger Williams crowd.

The Hawks were strong on the ball throughout the game, and it didn’t take long for them to capitalize on the momentum of their honored seniors. With two quick strikes, the Hawks were quickly rolling with an early 2-0 lead.

At the 9:17 mark, Leighton took a pass from Maddy Howard (Medfield, Mass.) at the top of Gordon’s box, and took a shot that went right over the outstretched hand of Gordon goaltender Kari Christensen (Standish, Maine) and into the back of the net to put the Hawks up by one. Leighton’s goal was her second of the season.

Two minutes later, the Hawks went up by two when Fusaro took a Pendleton pass and moved in past the Gordon defense from the right side, and shot it to the far left post and in the net. Fusaro’s goal was her sixth of the season, leading all Hawks on the team in that category.

Their strong play continued in the second half. Gordon’s defense scrambled to keep up with RWU’s slick passing and nifty footwork. The Hawks consistently put pressure on Gordon goalie Christensen, who put up a strong overall effort in the game.

The Hawks scored their third goal of the contest at the 68:37 mark in the 2nd half. Laurin Pendleton took a nice pass from Fusaro at the top of the box, and shot it in the far left corner for her second goal of the season. With the three points in the game for Pendleton, she moves solely into second place all-time in school history in goals scored (49) and third place in points (114).

Stephanie Jaques (Burlington, Vt.) and Kelsey McGee (Kings Park, N.Y.) combined for the shutout, with Jaques making all three saves in the game for RWU. Christensen stopped six shots in the contest for Gordon.

Roger Williams (10-6-1, 8-1-0 CCC) will close out the regular season with a 4 p.m. match on Monday, October 24th against Johnson and Wales. Gordon (9-7-0, 5-4-0) plays its final game of the season against Suffolk on Tuesday, October 25. Kickoff is at 3 pm.

RWU Men fall

The Roger Williams University Men’s Soccer team’s late season struggle continued Saturday afternoon, as the Hawks fell 2-0 to Gordon College in the team’s homecoming game.

After opening the season with nine victories in their first ten games, the Hawks have not won since a 2-1 decision against Wheaton College on September 28 and fall to 0-3-4 in their last seven games. Conversely, Gordon extended their winning streak to three games in a row and remained undefeated in the Commonwealth Coast Conference (6-0-2).

Prior to the game, the Hawks honored their graduating seniors before the game. Midfielder Josh Boyce (Peabody, Mass.), forward Liam Isleib (Killingworth, Conn.), and defenseman Nick Malatestinic (Bethel, Conn.) were honored in front of their fellow teammates, parents, and a hometown Roger Williams crowd.

The Hawks came out strong, riding the momentum of their seniors with a few strong shots. However, the momentum was quickly taken back by Gordon, who played a strong half against Roger Williams as the away team. The Fighting Scots took advantage of the momentum shift with 14:36 left in the half. Andrew Vandervoort (Memphis, Tenn.) moved in on the RWU defense from the left and put the ball past RWU goalkeeper Jon Pelloso (Wilbraham, Mass.) to give Gordon the lead. The goal was Vandervoort’s 12th of the season.

The Hawks had trouble throughout the first half. Gordon kept the pressure going, keeping an RWU defense that has been stellar all season on their toes. The Hawks entered halftime trailing 1-0.

The second half continued the misfortunes for the Hawks. Gordon went up 2-0 at 37:16 of the second half, when midfielder Kellen Kasiguran (Oakwood Village, Ohio) took a corner kick from the right of the Roger Williams goal, which hooked and bounced in for a 2-0 Fighting Scot lead and Kasiguran’s fourth score of the season.

After going down 2-0 early in the second half the Hawks picked up the pace, taking it to Gordon territory for the rest of the half. The late effort was not enough, and the Hawks continued their non-winning streak, which has reached its season high seventh game.

Spencer Lord (North Stonington, Conn.) made three saves for Gordon in the win, while Pelloso stopped one shot in the loss. Tom Mangels (Garden City, N.Y.) came on in goal for the final 4:02 of play.

Roger Williams (9-3-5, 3-2-4 CCC) play its final game of the regular season on Tuesday, October 25 away against Mount Ida. Kickoff is at 3 pm. Gordon (7-6-3, 6-0-2 CCC) plays hosts its regular season finale at 5:30 p.m. on October 25 as well against Western New England.