College Field Hockey
Rider University 3, University of New Hampshire 1
DURHAM, N.H..?Junior Tricia Crotty (Lewistown, Pa./Indian Valley) had two goals with junior Caitlin Mebs (Cinnaminson) adding a goal and an assist as the Broncs picked up their first win of the season, defeating the Wildcats of the University of New Hampshire 3-1 Sunday afternoon. “The game went well,” said head coach Lori Hussong. “The kids hustled and gave a complete effort from the opening whistle to the end of the game.”
Freshman Michaela Franey (York, Maine/York) added two assists to pace the offense.
“The team moved to the ball and played together,” Hussong added. “That was the difference between today and the first two games. We gave a 70 minute effort today.”
For Rider (1-2), senior Jen LoCastro (Cherry Hill, N.J./Camden Catholic) picked up her first collegiate win, making 11 saves as the Wildcats out shot the Broncs 24-12 and held a 12-5 penalty corner advantage. The Bronc defense held the Wildcats off the board for the final 65 minutes of action.
“We had a tough as nails defense today,” said LoCastro. “Everyone worked together and we were very vocal. It's awesome to get the first win under my belt.”
“Jen came up big for us,” Hussong said. “She faced a lot of shots and made some huge plays to break up some one on one opportunities. Her confidence is high now and as we play more games, the defense will get stronger and stronger.”
New Hampshire (2-1) scored less than five minutes into the game off a penalty corner before Rider tied the game three minutes later on Crotty's first goal of the season off a redirected sweep from Franey.
The Broncs took a 2-1 lead at the 22 minute mark when Mebs scored her first career goal off a redirected Franey pass and Rider held the 2-1 lead at intermission.
Crotty added her second goal of the game eight minutes into the second half off a pass from Mebs for the final score. Crotty now has 24 career goals, ninth best all-time at Rider.
“Our pressure-steal system worked well today,” said Crotty. “The offense was able to cut in the circle and kept moving and the defense worked hard to push the ball up the field to setup the offense. UNH is a tough turf team and we just came wanting to win and didn't let them push us out of our offensive positions.”
“Tricia took the bull by the horns today,” Hussong said. “She was a leader on the field and made sure everyone was where they were supposed to be. Caitlin had a solid performance off the bench in the second half yesterday (against Colgate) so we gave her the starting nod today and she rose to the occasion. She came out tenacious and on fire. Michaela (from York, Maine) was playing in front of her home crowd and she also had a strong day.”
“We played together today,” said Mebs. “We played like a unit. The assistant coaches told me to be more aggressive and I was able to do that yesterday and starting today, I was able to continue with that effort. My teammates did the work and I was able to convert the plays that they created for me.”
“Playing near home gave me a lot of motivation,” said Franey who played high school ball in Maine. “It was great to have my family and friends out there supporting me and the team. Our offensive line communicated better today. We switched off, cut to the ball better and made better passes. Whenever I received the ball, there was someone to pass the ball to and they were able to convert the passes. It was a solid group effort today.”
Rider travels to Farmville, Virginia Saturday and Sunday for a pair of games against Appalachian State and Longwood.
“That little second efforts that we gave today were huge,” Hussong added. “We were able to be aggressive in the circle and swarm to the ball when we had pressure on and we made smart plays on defense when New Hampshire put pressure on us.”
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