Salem, Mass.—The Vikings of Salem State University (1-1) beat the Curry College Colonels (0-1) on Thursday night 2-1 in double overtime.  The game winning goal was scored by freshman Kelly Birchmore (Swampscott, Mass.) on a breakaway goal that was set up by junior Casey Connolly (Nahant, Mass.) in the 101st minute of play.

Salem State had several opportunities to score in the first half, including a rope of a shot by sophomore Sara Previte (Beverly, Mass.).  Connolly converted a free kick from sophomore Katelyn Krish (Rockland, Mass.) into the back of the net to make it 1-0 going into halftime.

Early in the second half the Colonels had a breakaway chance, but the shot was beautifully blocked by the Salem State goaltender freshman Rachel Ledbetter (Dracut, Mass.).  Later, Curry’s Taylor Evans (Middleton, Mass.) scored off a rebound from Kelly Howe’s (Walton, Neb.) shot to tie the game.  The game continued to be back-and-forth battle and regulation ended in a 1-1 tie.

Salem State’s Ledbetter made 10 saves to earn the victory in net while Curry’s Samantha Hardy (Pepperell, Mass.) stopped 12 shots.

The Vikings next game is Wednesday at Gordon College at 4:00pm.  The Colonels play again at home against Johnson State at 12:00pm on Saturday. (Game Recap Courtesy of Salem State Sports Information)