Worcester, MA – The Rider University field hockey team lost on the road to Holy Cross, 2-0, on Friday evening in non-conference action at the Hart Turf Field at the Luth Athletic Complex.

The Broncs (2-2) lost their second straight road contest, while the Crusaders (2-2) won their second game in a row after starting the year 0-2.  

Rider fell behind early and was unable to capitalize on their opportunities in either half.

The two teams were scoreless at the half, but the Broncs threatened late in the first stanza as freshman Eline De Jong (Groningen, Netherlands) fired a shot on goal with less than 10 seconds on the clock that was turned aside by the Holy Cross goalkeeper.  

Thirteen minutes into the second half, the Crusaders opened the scoring as Suzanne Noone scored her first goal of the year. The tally proved to be the game-winner as the hosts kept the Broncs off the board.

The hosts added an insurance goal with under 10 minutes left in regulation courtesy of a strike from Casey Considine.

In goal for the Broncs, freshman Lena Vandam (Brasschaat, Belgium) made a career-high 13 saves in a losing effort.

Notes & Quotes
"Holy Cross was able to cash in on their scoring chances to win the game and we weren't able to do the same," Rider Head Coach Lori Hussong said. "We have to work harder to improve our skills so that we can remain poised and ready to make better decisions during critical moments of the game."

- Rider is now 1-1 all-time against Holy Cross. The meeting was the first between the teams since 2010.
- Freshman goalkeeper Lena Vandam was named the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Defensive Player of the Week on Tuesday afternoon.
- Holy Cross had a 19-15 advantage in shots.
- Rider took seven penalty corners and the Crusaders had five.

Broncs by the Numbers
- It marked the second time this season that Vandam has stopped 10 or more shots in a game. This season she is 2-2 with a 1.28 goals-against average and .857 save percentage to go along with 30 saves.
- Rider was shutout for the first time in 35 games. The last time Rider was held without a goal was 9/27/2015 against Colgate.  
- Four Broncs had at least two shots on goal.
- De Jong took a team-high four shots.
- Rider has not scored in the first half in back-to-back games.
- Six different Broncs had one shot on goal in the game.

Up Next
Rider closes out a busy week of action on Saturday as the Broncs head further north to the Granite State to take on Dartmouth at 3:30 pm. The tilt with the Big Green in Hanover is the final game of a five-game road trip to open the year. The clash is the first-ever between Dartmouth and Rider. To follow live stats and video visit the field hockey schedule page on GoBroncs.com.