EAST LANSING, Mich. – The Monmouth University field hockey team fell to Kent State, 5-1, in the opening game of the Auto-Owners Insurance MSU Invitational, Friday afternoon on Ralph Young Field, on the campus of Michigan State. With the loss, the Hawks fall to 0-2 on the year, while the Golden Flashes improve to 2-1.

Rebecca Lee scored a pair of goals within the first 10 minutes of the game to give Kent State a 2-0 lead which it carried into halftime. The Golden Flashes continued its offensive attack in the 38th minute when Julia Hofmann found the back of the cage off a corner play to increase their lead to three. Nearly 20 minutes later, Shannon Martin gave Kent State a 4-0 advantage with her goal from two yards out.

The Hawks stopped Kent State's run in the 65th minute when junior Amanda Schoenfeld (West Sayville, N.Y./Connetquot) sent a cross to the stick of senior Trish O'Dwyer (Dublin, Ireland/Loreto Beaufort) who deposited a shot into the left side of the cage for her first goal of the season.

Hofmann scored her second goal of the contest nearly three minutes later to cap off the scoring for the Golden Flashes.

Offensively, O'Dwyer paced the Blue and White with four shots, while Shoenfeld fired three shot of her own.

Junior Amanda Westerweller (Holmdel, N.J./Holmdel) played a full game in cage for the Hawks, making six saves, while her counterpart Jahna Jordan turned away three shots in the winning effort.

For the game, Kent State outshot Monmouth, 17-13, and held an 11-7 advantage in corner opportunities.

Monmouth concludes the Auto-Owners Insurance MSU Invitational on Sunday, September 8th as it takes on the host Spartans at 11 a.m.

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