Field Hockey Faces Regis For NECC Crown

Chris Kendrick (@CKendrick86)

CHICOPEE, Mass. – The Elms College field hockey team will host fourth-seeded Regis College in the 2014 New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) Championship game Saturday afternoon at Leary Field. Faceoff is scheduled for 2:00 p.m.

The Blazers own a 6-14 record for the season, posting a 3-2 mark in the NECC, to earn the two-seed in the conference tournament. Elms squared off with Wheelock College in the semifinals, and registered a 3-0 victory with goals from senior forward Kelly Martin (Enfield, Conn.) and Kayla Narey (South Hadley, Mass.) and junior defender Abby McNulty (Bedford, Mass.) to advance to the championship game for the first time since 2012. The Blazers are producing 1.7 goals per game on 11.7 shots, while limiting opponents to just seven goals over their last six contests.

Elms is paced Narey with a team-high 18 points on a team-high seven goals. Narey ranks second in the NECC in goals and points during her senior campaign. Senior forward Emma Morgan (South Kingstown, R.I.) has tallied six goals and four assists, while Martin and senior midfielder Imogen Leonard (Sharon, Mass.) has chipped in three goals apiece. McNulty and senior midfielder Meghan Goodrow (Sunderland, Mass.) have each netted a pair of goals on the season. Junior Samantha Alvino (Holtsville, N.Y.) has started all 20 games in goal for the Blazers, registering a 2.41 goals against average, a .811 save percentage, with 210 saves and three shutouts. Alvino has been one of the top netminders in the conference, ranking first in save percentage, second in goals against average, and third in saves.

Regis College (5-13) punched their ticket to the NECC Championship game with a 2-1 victory over top-seeded Becker College in the semifinals. The Pride rallied from a 1-0 deficit to net a pair of second-half goals in a five-minute span to earn the win. Regis is generating 1.2 goals per game on 11.1 shots, while opponents are recording 2.5 goals on 17.7 shots per game.

Regis senior midfielder Sashae Walls (Everett, Mass.) leads the Pride in goals (6) and points (15) on the season. Walls ranks fifth in the NECC in points and is tied for third in goals. Junior forward Laurie DeMars (Maynard, Mass.) has dished out a team-high four assists with five goals for 14 points, while sophomore forward Kelsey Morton (South Portland, Maine) has netted five goals with an assist. Sophomore midfielder Jenna Casello (Westborough, Mass.) has contributed two goals with three assists, and freshman forward Hailee Forest (Amherst, N.H.) has scored two goals. Junior goalkeeper Raegan Heck (Phillipston, Mass.) has started all the Pride games in between the pipes, posting a 2.32 goals against average, a .790 save percentage, with 143 saves and a shutout. Heck leads the NECC in goals against average, and goals against (38).

Earlier this season, the Blazers captured a 3-0 shutout victory over the Pride behind a pair of goals from Narey and a tally from Martin in the final minutes. Over the history of the matchup, the squads are knotted at a 7-7 tie in 14 career games, with the teams alternating wins in the last seven contests since 2007.

ELMS FIELD HOCKEY