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Field Hockey take down Bryant in 4-0 win

(Photo courtesy of UML Athletics) “River Hawks player handles ball”

Shaan Baid
Connector Editor

The River Hawks blew out Bryant 4-0 to improve to 5-5 while maintaining a perfect home record. The game took place on Friday afternoon at Wicked Blue Field.

The River Hawks’ defense has been lights out at home by not allowing a single goal in their four games.

Offensively, graduate student Alissia de Vries led the way with one goal and one assist for three points.

Among others, it was a big day for senior Maxine Van Havere as she scored her first goal of the season, while graduate student Mirthe Gans and sophomore Christina Wagner added one goal apiece. Graduate students Lisa Hagel, Aurise Tattrie and sophomore Karli Penrod recorded one assist to complement the offense.

The River Hawks were the aggressors on the offensive end, outshooting Bryant 26-3. They had 18 shots on goal to just one for Bryant. With hardly any movement on offense, Bryant’s defense was penetrated as Umass Lowell was constantly threatening to score.

Early in the game, Bryant attempted the first shot of the game, sailing wide. The River Hawks slowly pressured the Bulldogs’ defense, as in the ninth minute of the game, freshman Karlijin Kerkhof attempted a goal that sailed wide left. Shortly after, junior Madison Leeper fired another shot but was rejected by a Bryant defender. The River Hawks put up two more shots that were no good.

Finally, at the 12:47 mark, Wagner beat her defender and scored Umass Lowell’s first goal of the game. Shortly after, De Vries put the River Hawks up 2-0 at the 16:38 mark with assists from Penrod and Hagel.

Before the half, Tattrie dropped a dime from outside the circle to Gans, who tipped the ball into the goal at the 27:11 mark to go up 3-0 at the half.

In the second half, the River Hawks kept their foot on the gas and continued to be aggressive on the offensive end. They outshot the Bulldogs 4-0 in the third quarter. The best score attempt came when freshman Alice Van Hemelen fired a rocket that was batted away from the Bryant keeper.

In the fourth quarter, the River Hawks were even more aggressive, attempting 11 shots. They scored their final goal at the 54:57 mark when Van Havere scored off a dime from De Vries at the 54:57 mark.

Bryant could not cut the deficit at all, concluding a 4-0 blowout win for the River Hawks.

Head Coach Shannon LeBlanc was proud of her squad’s effort and resiliency in the outing. “We put a lot of work into this week of practice to change a couple things that we weren’t happy with last weekend and I just loved the team’s performance today,” said LeBlanc. “They were dialed in, they were structured, they were disciplined. They really just put the game plan into play for all four quarters.”

The River Hawks play their next game on Sunday, Oct. 6 when they host Long Island for Youth Day at 1 p.m. They look to keep their undefeated home streak alive.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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