Box Score

BIDDEFORD, Maine -- Nicole Matarozzo netted a hat trick and four others found the back of the cage as the University of New England field hockey team rolled to an 8-0 Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) win over Nichols College on Tuesday evening (Oct. 6) at the Big Blue Turf.

The Nor'easters (8-5), who have now defeated the Bison (1-9, 0-6 CCC) in six straight meetings, improve to 5-1 at the midway point of the league slate. Big Blue shares the top spot with both Salve Regina University and Endicott College.

UNE started the rout just 2:59 into the contest, when Matarozzo converted a feed from Vonde Saunders. Becky Zakorchemny put a slight redirection on a lengthy hit into the circle by Brooke Marshall in the 11th minute to make it 2-0, before Saunders setup Matarozzo again in the 34th minute to set the lead at 3-0 heading into the break. Shots (18-1) and penalty corners (6-0) largely favored the hosts in the opening frame.

Matarozzo tapped in her team-leading 13th goal of the season just 40 seconds into the 2nd half to increase the spread to four, before Saunders recorded her third assist of the night as she found Hannah Buckley for a goal in the 39th minute. Zakorchemny in the 43rd minute, Kersey Boulay from Kyla Bartnicki in the 62nd, and Morgan Kelley in the 67th capped the scoring output down the stretch for the Nor'easters.

UNE received a combined shutout from starting goalie Holly Smith and Nicole Schena, who registered two and three saves, respectively (42:08 / 27:52).

The Nor'easters finished with a 39-5 cushion in shots, forcing Nichols keeper Katherine Cotton into 11 stops during the initial 42:08. Ariana Beauregard played the remainder, turning aside four shots in that time.

Big Blue will head for Roger Williams University (2-4 CCC) in Saturday for a 1 p.m. match. The Bison are scheduled to host Anna Maria College for a non-league date on Thursday (4 p.m.).