RINDGE, N.H. - Sophomore Sam McDonough (Walkersville, Md./Walkersville) scored the tie-breaking goal in the 84th minute on Saturday, sending the Saint Michael's College women's soccer team past Franklin Pierce University, 2-1, during Northeast 10 Conference play at Sodexo Field. The visitors snapped the hosts' 11-game unbeaten streak and 14-game home undefeated run, handing them just their second home loss in three years.
 
Both squads were among eight schools under consideration for the NCAA's first East Region rankings this week, while the Ravens received votes toward the latest United Soccer Coaches national poll. The Purple Knights were fifth in the United Soccer Coaches East Region rankings, and Franklin Pierce stood fourth.
 
With one regular-season contest remaining, Saint Michael's clinched the No. 3 seed in the upcoming seven-team NE10 Championship to secure its first home postseason contest since 1989.
 
RECORDS

• Saint Michael's (14-2-1, 5-2-1 NE10), Franklin Pierce (11-2-4, 6-1-2 NE10)

SAINT MICHAEL'S LEADERS

• McDonough, 1 goal
• Sophomore Scarlett Brookes (Rockaway, N.J./Morris Knolls), 1 goal
• Senior Faith Kosiba (Dunstable, Mass./Groton-Dunstable Regional), 1 assist
• Sophomore Jules Peterson (Massapequa, N.Y./Massapequa), 1 assist
• First-year Abby Costa (Portsmouth, R.I./Portsmouth), 1 assist
• First-year Chloe Laizer (West Springfield, Mass./West Springfield), 4 saves

OPPONENT LEADERS

• Junior Jenni Huttunen, 1 goal
• First-year Ryan Rosario, 4 saves

GAME FACTS

• Saint Michael's tied a school record with its sixth consecutive win, reaching that mark for the second time this year after only the 1989 team had even won six in a row once.
• The Purple Knights are 9-1 away from home, including 7-1 in true road games.
• After recording a 517:30 shutout streak earlier this season, the Purple and Gold ran another shutout streak to 504:29 before seeing it end on Saturday.
• Brookes' 11 goals this season are the most by a Purple Knight since Sara Pope '04 had the same in 2001, and tie for sixth in program history. Her 27 points tie for eighth and are the most since Michelle Bougor '98 notched that figure in 1997. Brookes has six goals and five assists during a current eight-game points streak, and is tied for the NE10 lead in both goals and points.
• Kosiba handed off her seventh assist, the most by a Purple Knight since Suzanne Fontas '04 in 2003.
• Saint Michael's picked up its first win at Franklin Pierce since Oct. 2, 2012, but its first that did not extend to overtime since Sept. 23, 2008.
• The Ravens entered the day 8-0-3 in their last 11 games and 12-0-2 at home since their last loss at Sodexo Field on Oct. 12, 2024. Since 2023, they held a 21-1-3 mark at home heading into Saturday.
• Both teams took 12 shots, while the hosts held a 7-4 lead in corner kicks.

THE ACTION

• Brookes put Saint Michael's ahead in the 17th minute, lifting a shot from the edge of the box into the right side of the net despite having five defenders within a couple yards. Kosiba's pass led directly to the goal, with Peterson and junior Bridget Hanley (Mansfield, Mass./Mansfield) also doing work to secure possession.
• In the 51st minute, Laizer made a diving save of graduate student Makenzie Shean's shot, leading to a corner kick. On the ensuing set piece, senior Claudia Peirce and Shean connected to find Huttunen for a one-touch shot that hit the lower left side of the net just beyond a sliding Laizer.
• On the Purple Knights' second corner kick of the 84th minute, Costa's entry went directly to McDonough's head, with the ball skipping off the turf and inside the left netting for the game-winner.
• A final Franklin Pierce corner kick in the 87th minute led to no shots, as the hosts did not release a shot after the 77th minute.

NEXT SAINT MICHAEL'S GAME

• Wednesday at Assumption University, 4 p.m.
• The Greyhounds were 10th in this week's United Soccer Coaches East Region poll.