PRIDE DROP OVERTIME HEARTBREAKER IN NECC TITLE GAME

PAXTON, Mass. – Junior Nichole Lowe (Saugus, Mass.) scored an unassisted goal with 4:26 to play in sudden-death overtime to lift the Anna Maria College AMCATS to their second straight New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) Field Hockey Championship, a 3-2 victory over Regis College on Saturday evening at AMCAT Field.

With the win the AMCATS record moves to 15-6, while the Pride finish the 2013 campaign with a 8-11 mark.

Junior Sashae Walls (Everett, Mass.) and senior Christine O'Toole (Boston, Mass) scored for the Pride, while netminder Raegan Heck (Phillipston, Mass.) posted 6 saves in the loss.

Lowe, the NECC Tournament MVP, would receive an outlet pass at midfield and streak down the left wing before deking a trio of Pride defenders and wristing a shot low to the right corner for the win.

Anna Maria tipped the twine in regulation with a pair of goals from freshman Kayla Garczynski (Norwood, Mass.) and Kaitlyn Moran (Leicester, Mass.). Sophomore Mary Kate Breen (Londonderry, NH) collected four saves in the win.

Regis pushed in the first goal of the game late in the opening half. Walls laced a shot top left corner past Breen from five yards out on the right wing.

The AMCATS would outshoot the Pride 10-4 and hold the advantage in corners, but Regis would take a 1-0 lead into intermission.

Regis would double the lead at the 48:44 mark when O'Toole picked up a loose ball in front of the net and deposited it into the back of the net for the 2-0 advantage.

Trailing 2-0, Anna Maria cut the lead in half at the 50:58 mark, as senior captain Shannon Looney (Leicester, Mass.) had a monstrous drive from outside the circle that freshman Kayla Garczynski tipped past Regis netminder Raegan Heck to make it a 2-1 game.

With just under two minutes to play and intense pressure by Anna Maria, freshman Katie Moran wristed a cross pass from Kylie Dalbec inside the left post for the game-tying goal, setting up Lowe's heroics in the overtime.

Anna Maria will now await the NCAA Division III selection announcement, slated for Monday, November 11th.

Joining Lowe on the All-Tournament team were: Kayla Garczynski, Nicole Morrison (Rutland, Mass.) and Kayla Lapierre (Worcester, Mass.) from Anna Maria. Regis representatives were: Stacy Burns (Waltham, Mass.), Christine O'Toole, Kym Kerr (Uxbridge, Mass.) and Raegan Heck. Jazmin Garcia and Michelle Griczika from Becker College and Ashley Reid and Allie LaMonica from Elms College.

Release courtesy of Anna Maria Sports Information