Running on momentum from last week’s wins against Skidmore College and St. Lawrence University, UR women’s field hockey racked up two more victories: the first a 4-1 victory over the Ithaca College Bombers on Wednesday, Oct. 10 and the second an 8-1 victory over Morrisville State College on Friday, Oct. 12.
“It was very important for us to come out strong this week with the same mentality we had for the Skidmore and St. Lawerence games,” sophomore forward Gina Cunningham said.
And come out strong they did.
Senior forward Shelby Hall was the star of Wednesday’s game, scoring three of UR’s four goals, making her overall tally 15 goals this season.
Her first came 10 minutes into the game, with a shot by Hall from 10 yards out. Hall soon added her second when she tipped in a penalty shot from freshman forward Michelle Relin. Relin soon joined Hall with a goal of her own, with 24 minutes on the clock, putting Rochester in the lead 3-0 at the half.
However, the Bombers showed they were not out of it yet, coming back strong in the second half with a goal of their own, making the score 3-1.
In the end, this just wasn’t enough. Hall hit the net once more with a goal at 54:03, putting the final nail in the Bomber’s coffin and earning Rochester the 4-1 victory.
The ’Jackets took on Morrisville State two days later.
“The Morrisville game was a great team effort with seven different players scoring goals,” Cunningham said.
The ’Jackets showed they were out for blood from the very start, with junior midfielder Katie Flaschner scoring the first goal seven minutes in. Soon following were two more goals by Relin and junior midfielder Lindsey Randall. Randall hit a shot through the opposing goalies five hole, making UR lead 3-0.
Relin then scored again with just 7:56 remaining in the half, putting the ’Jackets up 4-0.
In the seventh minute of the second half, Cunningham connected with the net to increase UR’s lead to 5-0.
However, a minute later, Morrisville State forward Taylor Fields put the ball away, giving Morrisville their first and only goal of the game.
This flicker of hope for Morrisville was soon snuffed. UR countered with three more unanswered goals; the first by freshman forward Nicole Cerza, the second by freshman forward Mimi Adar and the third and final goal by sophomore midfielder Megan Keil with only 2:27 left on the clock. All three goals were assisted by Flaschner.
UR’s offense dominated the game, remaining in control of the ball and keeping it on Morrisville’s side for a majority of the time. UR gave Morrisville goalie Ellen DePasquale a near impossible task, hammering her with 40 shots.
“You really couldn’t ask for a better start to [Meliora] Weekend — having an 8-1 win and seeing goals from seven different girls,” Flaschner said. “Every single girl on the roster — 21 field players and three goalies — contributed. We know we are in control of our own fate and we know that we have worked too hard to let up now.”
The ’Jackets hope to continue their winning streak this weekend in away matches against Liberty League opponents Vassar College on Friday, Oct. 19 and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute on Saturday, Oct. 20.
Cozen is a member of the class of 2015.