PROVIDENCE, R.I. - Third-seeded Keene State College and fourth-seeded University of Southern Maine won their respective contests in the opening round of the 2022 Little East Conference (LEC) Women’s Lacrosse Championship Tournament Tuesday.
 
No. 3 Keene State 15, No. 6 UMass Dartmouth 2 - Box Score
 
The Owls scored all 10 first half goals and never looked back on their way to a 15-2 win. Haile Ratajack led all scorers with four goals and one assist on the day, while Hannah Dworkin and Cadence Loos has three goals each. Ratajack also led the way with five caused turnovers, five ground balls, and four draw controls.
 
Keene State improved to 7-9 with the win, and will next head to second-seeded Plymouth State for Thursday’s semifinals. Game time is set for 5 p.m.
 
Melanny Sanchez Alvarez and Claire Peterson scored one goal each for the Corsairs, who finished the season at 4-14. Payton Conceicao had 10 stops between the pipes for UMass Dartmouth.
 
No. 4 Southern Maine 18, No. 5 Eastern Connecticut 3 - Box Score
 
The Huskies scored five of the six first quarter goals and never looked back in this one, taking a 9-2 lead at the half on their way to an 18-3 victory over the Warriors. Rachel Shanks led all scorers with six goals for USM, while Kate Colvin found the back of the net four times and Jillian Nichols had a hat trick.
 
Jessie Pyrek-Bennett, Claire Riccitelli-Pestana and Shay Ventresca had one goal each for Eastern Connecticut, which was stymied by Southern Maine goalie Cece Racine. Racine went the distance in goal for the Huskies, totaling 13 saves in the contest.
 
Southern Maine improved to 11-6 for the season, and will next head to top-seeded Western Connecticut for Thursday’s semifinals, game time is set for 5 p.m. in Danbury. The Warriors end the season at 8-8.