PROVIDENCE, R.I. - Third-seeded Castleton and fifth-seeded Southern Maine recorded shutout victories Tuesday in the opening round of the 2021 Little East Conference Women’s Soccer Championship Tournament, sending them to Thursday’s semifinals.
 
Rylee Nichols provided all of the offense for the Spartans (9-5-4), scoring each of their three goals in the match. She got them on the board just 10:21 into the contest before striking twice in the second half, first in the 56th minute and then putting any hopes of a comeback from sixth-seeded Keene State (7-12-1) to rest when she found the back of the net with 1:15 to go in the match.
 
Alex Benfatti stopped all three shots on goal she faced to earn the decision in goal for Castleton, two of which came in the first half. Rebecca Koziara stopped two of the five shots on targe she faced in taking the loss for the Owls.
 
The Spartans outshot Keene State 14-8 in the match, which included an 8-3 margin in the second half. Cornered kicks favored the Owls, 6-4.
 
The Huskies pulled the first upset of this postseason with a 2-0 triumph at fourth-seeded Eastern Connecticut. Catriona Gould got Southern Maine on the board 8:30 into the match, and that 1-0 lead stood until Emma Forgues recorded an insurance goal with 1:10 left in the game to seal the victory for the Huskies.
 
Gould put three shots toward the goal in the opening minutes, ringing on off the crossbar 1:31 in before seeing her second attempt stopped by Alexis Tyrell. The third time was the charm, as she deposited a lead pass from Ciera Berthiaume for the eventual game-winner. Forgues redirected a pass from Alex Allain from the right side past Emily Wallace to cap the scoring.
 
Bre Attwood stopped each of the six shots on goal she faced to earn the decision in goal for USM. Tyrell stopped four of the five shots on goal she faced in the opening 45 minutes, while Wallace had no saves in the second 45 minutes.
 
Southern Maine outshot Eastern 13-12, while the Warriors held a 4-3 edge in corner kicks.
 
Thursday’s semifinals will feature top-seeded Western Connecticut hosting the Huskies and second-seeded UMass Boston hosting Castleton.