AMHERST, Mass. – The No. 13 Amherst College field hockey team used a pair of first half goals by Caroline Fiore '18 and Mary Grace Cronin '18 to shutout non-conference opponent Keene State 2-0 Wednesday night at Gooding Field.

With the win, Amherst improves to 2-1 on the year, while the Owls drop to 3-3 overall.

Amherst got on the board in the 11th minute when Fiore took advantage of a corner opportunity to find the back of the net for her first score of the season. The sophomore collected the corner pass from Annika Nygren '16 at the top left of the circle, and blasted a low shot to beat Owl goaltender Meaghan Dwyer on her right side.  

The Jeffs nearly notched another score just a minute later, with Fiore finding the ball in  the circle and taking a well-placed shot that forced Dwyer to make a diving save to her left.

Keene State recorded their first offensive scare of the game at the 20-minute mark. After earning their second corner of the half, Kayla Renaud sent a hard shot from the top of the circle just inches wide of the goal.

The Purple & White would once again use a penalty corner to tally their second and final goal of the game. With just under four minutes left in the half, senior Annie Turnbull would send the ball across the top of the circle to Cronin, who was able to slide the ball past the Keene State netminder to make it a 2-0 contest.

The second half featured 35 minutes of scoreless action as neither team could find the back of the net despite having notable offensive opportunities.

With 15:30 left on the clock, Marita Brothers made a clutch defensive save for Keene State after A. Turnbull was able to one-touch a bouncing ball in the circle towards the net.

Emily Horwitz '17 added an impressive play of her own with three minutes left in the game to keep the shutout intact. After a shot and subsequent save put Horwitz on the turf, it seemed as if Brittney Cardente would have an open net opportunity to shorten the lead to one, but Horwitz was able to extend her arm just enough to deflect the ball towards the sideline.

Amherst edged Keene State in both shots and corner opportunities, 16-7 and 9-2, respectively. Horwitz made six saves in the winning effort. Owl goaltender Dwyer (3-3) took the loss for Keene State with two goals and five saves, while Gwendolyn Thayer recorded eight saves after entering the game in a relief effort.

The Purple & White returns to NESCAC conference action on Saturday, Sept. 19 for an 11 a.m. tilt with Middlebury College.