By Taylor Kimmell
Staff Writer
By Daniel Meade
Staff Writer
The Rams collected a win against the Western Connecticut State University Wolves Oct. 22.
The game started badly for Framingham, as the Wolves put the ball in the net with just 34 seconds elapsed in the first quarter.
Western Connecticut made another attempt on goal about 2 minutes in but was shut down by freshman goaltender Rowan Whittaker.
Following Whittaker’s impressive save, the Rams brought the ball back down the field. Junior Natalia Roehr scored Framingham’s first goal with an assist from Mikayla Malmquist 4 minutes into the game.
“I'm so happy that I got a goal today! I really think it set the momentum for the game moving forward. … We wanted to score more. We got hungry for more,” Roehr said.
The Wolves fought back with a goal scored off a penalty corner not a minute later.
Freshman Finley Hogan tallied the Rams’ second point on a breakaway off a pass from Malmquist.
The first shot of the second quarter came from the Wolves around the 21-minute mark, but the effort was blocked by Whittaker.
Whittaker made three more saves back-to-back, each within 10 seconds of the last.
Framingham State returned the favor with shots from Roehr and sophomore Maddie Bailey, followed by a corner and five more shots - one from senior Captain Kaylee Beck, three from Hogan, and one from graduate student Captain Angelina Serra.
The Rams kicked off the third quarter with a corner against the Wolves and a shot by senior Julie Hadley, which was deflected by the Wolves’ goalie, Gracie Bomboy.
Framingham earned another corner about 9 minutes later, which resulted in a goal from Serra on an assist from Hadley. This brought the score to 3-2 for the Rams.
Western Connecticut attempted to tie up the game with two more shots on goal, but were unsuccessful.
These advances by the Wolves resulted in a stroke penalty against the Rams, during which Whittaker deflected the shot from Western Connecticut’s Miah Ruiz, keeping the lead for FSU.
“Strokes put a lot of pressure on the goalkeeper, especially when your team is up by one and you want to keep the lead,” said Whittaker.
From then on, the Rams kept pace with the Wolves, shutting down any attempts to score and running down the clock for a win.
During the last quarter, Framingham State shut down two more corners. Whittaker remained a force to be reckoned with, refusing to let any of the Wolves’ shots find the back of the net.
FSU persisted, even as Western Connecticut pulled their goalie off the field in exchange for an additional field player for the last 1:30 of the game.
The Rams held their own until the final buzzer sounded throughout the complex - the scoreboard lighting up to display their 3-2 victory.
This was a corner-heavy game for the Rams. They defended against 8 in total, clearing 7.
Hadley said that when faced with a corner penalty, defenders need to lock in, approaching the ball as quickly as possible. This helps them get the ball outside of the circle and back into offensive play.
Hogan said the team will use the momentum from this win.
“We're just going to try to keep going forward as a team and keep our good energy up into the last few weeks of our season,” she said.
The Rams won their game Oct. 19 against the Salem State Vikings in a conference matchup, improving their conference record.
Unfortunately, the team was unsuccessful in their effort to prevail over the Plymouth State Panthers Oct. 24.
These games brought FSU’s overall record to 6-9, and their conference record to 3-4.
The Rams host the Bridgewater State Bears for a conference matchup this Saturday, Oct. 26.