DANBURY, CT – After a scoreless first half, junior Hailey Lehning (Woodbury, CT) scored the only goal of the game for the Eastern Connecticut State University women's soccer team early in the second half as the Warriors defeated in-state and Little East Conference rival Western Connecticut State University Saturday evening at the Westside Athletic complex. 

Western generated the first good scoring chance of the game with about 10 minutes played when junior Celia DeVoe (Farmington, CT) delivered a long pass from the right side of the box intended for senior Kelsey Chacho (Plainville, CT) breaking in on the left.  An Eastern defender beat Chacho to the ball by inches to prevent the shot and keep the game scoreless. 

Eastern earned the game's first corner kick at the 20:45 mark, but a header by Lehning was wide right. 

After the first 45 minutes of play, the game remained scoreless. 

At the 56:06 mark of the second half, Eastern broke the scoreless tie when Lehning received a pass from sophomore Emily Becher (Brooklyn, NY) in the middle of the Western box.  Lehning quickly settled the ball and delivered a strike to the back left corner of the Western goal to give the Warriors a 1-0 lead. 

With just under five minutes to play senior Rebecca Rivera (Monroe, CT) positioned herself in front of the Eastern goal and received a pass from DeVoe.  Rivera out-jumped two Eastern defenders and headed a shot toward the goal, but the Eastern keeper was there to make the save and preserve the Warrior lead. 

The Colonials were unable to generate any further scoring chances down the stretch, giving Eastern a 1-0 final margin of victory. 

For the game, Eastern held an 18-12 advantage in shots, and also had a 3-1 edge in corner kicks.  Western's sophomore keeper Jillian Fernandez (Columbia, CT) recorded seven saves in a losing effort, while senior Rachel Skelton (East Lyme, CT) made four saves to pick up the win for Eastern. 

With the loss, Western falls to 5-3-1 and moves to 0-1-1 in the Little East Conference.  Eastern improves to 5-2-1, 2-0 in the LEC.  The Colonials return to action on Monday, September 28, when they travel to play Wentworth.  Game time is slated for 7:00pm.  Eastern Connecticut plays at Connecticut College on Tuesday.