Blue Devils Win Second Straight, Top Liberty 21-9 On the Road

Five different players scored three goals or more as Central Connecticut State University won its second straight game on the road Friday afternoon. Sophomore Ashley Perkoski led the way with five goals and two assists, while the Blue Devils defeated Liberty by a score of 21-9 in Lynchburg, VA.

CCSU led from start to finish, picking up the first two goals within the first five minutes of play. Sophomore Ashley Mara got things started with an unassisted scored less than three minutes after the start. Freshman Betsy Vendel recorded the next goal off of an assist from senior Courtney Mooney.

The Flames tied the score on three different occasions, the last coming at 5-5 with 2:26 left in the opening period. Central then took the lead for the final time and extended to three with three straight scores inside the final 40 seconds of the half. Perkoski and junior Michele Conway each tallied one goal and one assist during the run.

The Blue Devils opened things up in the second period with three more goals, making it 11-5 less than five minutes into the final frame. This time it was Mooney recording a goal and an assist during the stretch. After a short 2-1 run by Liberty, CCSU scored seven goals in a row over a span of 8:38 to put the game out of reach for the Flames.

Perkoski scored three straight goals in only 2:14 by herself to end the Blue Devil run and take the 19-7 lead. CCSU went on to the 21-9 victory and improved to 4-4 on the season. Liberty falls to 1-7 with the defeat.

Perkoski led Central with five goals and added two assists, while it was Mooney who led in points after tallying three goals and five assists. Vendel and fellow freshman Meaghan McCurry each tallied four goals, while Conway added three scores and three assists.

Vendel also led the way with a career best six draw controls. Sophomore Erin DeLancey totaled a team best six ground balls while stopping 11 shots in the net for Central.

CCSU will next come back home to host Northeast Conference opponents Wagner and Long Island on April 1 and 3, respectively.