NEW HAVEN, Conn. (October 20, 2023) – It was wet at Johnson Field on Friday afternoon. Very wet. But Sacred Heart field hockey refused to have its spirits dampened on Senior Day. Junior Aine Keaney (New City, N.Y.) and senior Claire Skumurski (Niskayuna, N.Y.) found the back of the net to lead the Pioneers to an important, 2-0, Northeast Conference victory over Stonehill.
 
With the result, SHU (4-10, 2-3 NEC) and Stonehill (4-11, 2-3 NEC) are both tied for the fourth and final berth in the NEC Championship, along with LIU and Wagner. SHU hosts winless Merrimack at 4 p.m. on Sunday and will attempt to boost its postseason chances in the process.
 
Following Friday's Senior Day ceremonies in the pouring rain, the first half went uneventfully. Stonehill held an 8-1 edge in shot attempts, including 5-1 in shots on goal, over the first 30 minutes, but neither team got on the scoreboard before the intermission.
 
SHU turned things around after halftime and posted an 8-2 advantage in shots the rest of the way. Keaney finally broke the ice in the 39^th minute. She was on the scene in front of the goal to take a feed from the left side by Madelyn Kidd (Hillsborough, N.J.) and usher it past Stonehill goalkeeper Shannon Conte for her third goal of the season.
 
The insurance marker came just 2:21 later, in the 42^nd minute. Keaney carried the ball into the right side of the circle, but was dispossessed by the Stonehill defense. However, the Skyhawks immediately put the ball on the stick of Skumurski, just inside the edge of the circle on the right side. She put a shot through traffic from distance from there, and it found its way home for her third of the campaign.
 
Samantha Maresca (Mamaroneck, N.Y.) was busy with five saves in the first half, but then needed only one more in the second half to finish off a six-save shutout, the first of her collegiate career, and improve to 4-9. Conte (4-11) stopped two of four shots on her cage in defeat for Stonehill.