Box Score Box Score

CANTON, N.Y. - The St. Lawrence field hockey team got two goals from senior Brooke Maloney in defeating Rensselaer, 3-1, in the Liberty League opener. The win moves St. Lawrence to 3-3 (1-0 Liberty League) on the season, while Rensselaer falls to 2-5 (0-1 Liberty).

First-year student Nicole Matos made eight saves to pick up her first collegiate victory.

Though Maloney handled the majority of the scoring for the Saints, it was Matos and senior Caitlin Estes who made the difference on defense. Estes, who typically plays in the midfield, played in the back on Friday and did a stand-out job keeping Rensselaer's offense in check.

Rensselaer came out of the game on the attack and needed only 3:51 to take a 1-0 lead in the contest. The Engineers, who pinned St. Lawrence in their own end to start the game, scored off of a penalty corner when Alissa Peterson found Sandy Turnbull in front of Matos. Turnbull quickly fired a shot past the keeper for her third goal of the season a 1-0 advantage.

Maloney would answer for the Scarlet and Brown only 6:34 later with her second goal of the season to knot the score at 1-1. The Greenwich, CT native made a nice move around a defender into the scoring circle and blasted a rocket past Rensselaer netminder Briana Earle to cap the first half scoring.

The two Liberty League foes went nearly 40:00 minutes before senior Michelle Laframboise broke the tie and gave the Saints a 2-1 lead at 50:22. Maloney got the play started with a great pass from outside the scoring circle to the far post, where Laframboise was waiting to redirect it past Earle.

Maloney then put the game away with her third goal of the season at 67:26. Swits centered the ball in front of Earle and Maloney was able to one-time it into the cage with only 2:33 remaining, allowing the Scarlet and Brown to celebrate a 3-1 victory over the Engineers.

St. Lawrence finished with a narrow 18-17 advantage in shots and a 12-11 lead in penalty corners. Both Matos and Earle made eight saves in the game for their respective teams.

The Saints will look to earn a weekend sweep tomorrow, when they square off with Vassar College (2pm). The Engineers visit Hamilton (2pm).