WESTFIELD, Mass. – Westfield State junior Emily Martin (Southwick, Mass.) scored the game-tying goal with 1:07 remaining in regulation, then deposited the game-winner in overtime as the Owls rallied past Framingham State 2-1 in a Little East Conference game on a Wednesday night from Maple Street Field in Framingham, Mass.
Westfield State has now won four straight conference games, improving their overall record to 9-6 and 6-3 in the Little East Conference. Framingham drops to 8-7 on the season and 4-6 in conference play after the loss.
With the Owls trailing by a goal in the final minutes of regulation, Martin buried the equalizer for her ninth goal of the season off a feed from first-year Kaleigh Murphy (Pembroke, Mass.) to force overtime.
In the 70th minute, junior Skyla Harthcock (Martha's Vineyard, Mass.) sent in a cross that was tipped by Martin, which then deflected off Rams goalkeeper Kaitlin Loughlin (Ashland, Mass.) and a defender before sneaking inside the left post for the game winner.
For the Owls, it was their second straight come-from-behind overtime victory which saw mirror image finishes. Westfield rallied to defeat Eastern Connecticut, 2-1, this past Saturday with a fourth quarter equalizer, then an overtime goal off a Harthcock feed in the 69th minute.
Owls first-year goalkeeper Emma Gniadek (Worcester, Mass.) and junior Paige Reisman (Milford, Mass.) split time in net. Reisman recorded five fourth-quarter saves to send the game to overtime. She recorded her sixth win of the campaign.
Rams first-year Kennedy St. Pierre (Bath, Maine) registered the long goal for Framingham, sparking the scoring in the 29th minute off an assist from Corlene Guenard (Acton, Mass.). Loughlin finished the contest with seven saves.
With the victory tonight, Westfield currently sits in a tie for fifth place in a tightly contested conference, with six teams holding two or three losses in the league. The Owls will face one of those three-loss teams in their next game, hosting Castleton University in an impactful LEC game on homecoming weekend on Saturday at 7:00 P.M. from Alumni Field in Westfield, Mass.