Worcester, MA --- Junior Taylor Ledwith (Springfield, MA/Cathedral) fired home the game-winning goal with 13:01 left in regulation off a pass from senior Kelli McPherson (Mansfield, MA) to help lift Worcester State to a 2-1 victory over Southern Maine in Little East Conference field hockey action this evening at Coughlin Field.

The Lancers (10-6, 5-4 LEC) took the early 1-0 advantage when junior Julie O'Rourke (Worcester, MA/St. Peter-Marian) potted her squad-leading 11th of the campaign on a penalty stroke less than seven minutes into the game. The keeper was whistled for the violation when the ball got underneath her pads.

Over the course of the rest of the opening frame both squads had opportunities to either tie the score or net some insurance.

Senior Peyton Dostie (Standish, ME) had a great chance off a penalty corner on the left side of the net 20 minutes into the contest, but freshman goalie Kathryn Salemme (Boxboro, MA) kicked the ball out of harm's way and she turned aside a high shot on the rebound by Dostie.

With less than 10 minutes remaining in the stanza, O'Rourke had a bid on a breakaway, however, sophomore keeper Amanda Kasbohm (York, ME) spread herself out on the top of the apron to stop the ball in its tracks and sophomore Meghan Pini's (Natick, MA) follow through on the loose ball went wide to the right on the open net.

The persistence of the Huskies (7-10, 4-5 LEC) paid off as Dostie potted her squad-best 14th of the year from sophomore Jennifer Poulin (Winslow, ME) following a turnover by the Lancer defense in the midfield. Dostie scored the equalizer from the left side of the cage and finished to the bottom right corner just 41 ticks into the second stanza.

With momentum on their side, USM had a great chance to go up midway through the period on a penalty corner.

Freshman Lindsay Jackson (Readfield, ME) rifled a low shot in the middle, but it was knocked down by junior Megan Ripke (Southwick, MA). After the redirect went right to senior Rebecca Pratt (Cornville, ME), Ripke again put her stick up in the air from the ground to preserve the even contest.

The effort proved to be a crucial one as the Lancers registered the go-ahead tally 10 minutes later. With a scrum in front at the top of the arc, McPherson corralled the ball, passed it to Ledwith who notched her third of the season.

Though the Huskies had two penalty corners in the final four minutes of regulation, the visitors did not get off a quality attempt on net.

Both net minders were solid between the pipes as Salemme collected six saves and Kasbohm recorded four. USM actually held the slim 13-10 margin in shots (9-6 on goal) and an 8-5 lead in penalty corners.

With her two key defensive stops, Ripke now has eight to lead the LEC in the category. O'Rourke moved into a tie for eighth on the all-time scoring list with Samantha Janda (2008-11).

McPherson along with classmates Katelyn Abber (Dedham, MA), Jourdan Childs (Attleboro, MA) and Molly Kilday (Westford, MA) were honored on "senior day" for playing in their final home regular-season contest in a brief pre-game ceremony.

Both squads will play again on Saturday when Worcester State heads up to Fitchburg State for a 10 AM meeting while Southern Maine entertains Western Connecticut at noon.