College Field Hockey
Rutgers University 5, Rider University 2
PISCATAWAY--There is a reason they call it a trap game. The Rider University field hockey team came into play riding a 13-game winning streak with Rutgers University had won just once all season in 14 tries. The Broncs were playing their second game in less than 24 hours, against a non-conference opponent and were on the road after a hard fought win the day before in Northeast Conference play. There is a reason they call it a trap game."Obviously we weren't really happy with our effort on the field today," said head coach Lori Hussong. "Our defense didn't hold up and we didn't play well as a team. We are taking this as a learning experience. The conference playoffs are scheduled as two games in two days so it isn't a bad thing for us to have gone through this experience now."The Scarlet Knights rallied from a 1-0 deficit two minutes into the game and defeated Rider (13-1) 5-2 on Saturday.Rider senior Erin McGinniss received a pass on the left side from freshman Jackie Adams (Medford Lakes/Shawnee), scoring her second goal of the season to give the Broncs a 1-0 lead just 1:51 into the game. McGinniss has points in three of her last four games.Rutgers tied the game at the 12:45 mark on a penalty corner and less than three minutes later, the Scarlet Knights curved in a shot from the far left side to take a one-goal lead. This marked the first time this season that Rider has trailed in a game.Rutgers (2-13) held a 3-1 penalty corner advantage in the first half, taking the one-goal lead into intermission.The Scarlet Knights used a rebound off a blocked shot for an insurance goal four minutes into the second half before Rider sophomore Megan Pisani (Plainsboro/W. Windsor Plainsboro-North) scored her team-leading 15th goal of the season, rebounding a shot by junior Kristy Kelly (Bethlehem, Pa./Freedom) to get the Broncs back to within one with 22 minutes left in the game. Pisani has points in six of her last seven games.Rutgers made it a two-goal game again with 11 minutes left and scored on a penalty corner with no time left for the final score.
"We didn't play our game and Rutgers took it right to us," said Hussong. "They (Rutgers) played exceptionally well and their passing was right on the mark. For them to come in at 1-13, it's incredible to me that they were after watching them play."
Senior goalie Lyndsie Johnson (Gibbsboro/Eastern) made four saves for the Broncs as Rutgers out-shot Rider 9-8. The Scarlet Knights held a 4-2 penalty corner advantage.
Rutgers defeated the Broncs for the first time since the 1999 season and have now won 16 of the 19 games (one tie) all-time against Rider. In the last meeting, the Broncs defeated the Scarlet Knights 3-2 in double-overtime on October 26, 2004 in Piscataway.
The Broncs had entered play as one of only three undefeated teams in NCAA Division I field hockey along with Maryland (15-0) and North Carolina (13-0).
"Typically I would say this was a bad loss for us," Hussong added. "But in the grand scheme of things, with it being out of conference and the second of back to back games, that absorbs some of the disappointment. With that said, had we played our best and played as a team, I would be more than happy to accept a 5-2 loss."
Rider (4-0 NEC) travels to Robert Morris for a Northeast Conference game on October 23 at 1:00pm.
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