Rider brushes off Colgate in 2-0 victory
By Nicoletta Feldman
The field hockey team went 1-1 over the weekend. After dropping the first game, the MAAC opener against Bryant, the Broncs redeemed themselves with a 2-0 win over Colgate.
On Sept. 29, Rider outshot Bryant 13-5, but was unable to match its opponent where it mattered: on the scoreboard. Of those 13 shots, only two were on goal, and Bryant keeper Lyndsay Swanston was able to stop both of them.
The only goal of the game came late in the first half when the Bulldogs capitalized on a penalty corner. Freshman midfielder Freya Ward tipped the initial shot on the play from sophomore defender Floor van Dommelen into the back of the cage, giving Bryant a 1-0 lead at 33:04. Ward’s goal, her second of the season, proved to be all the team needed in order to defeat the Broncs.
“We need to be ready to cash in on our chances and be poised and composed when doing so,” said Head Coach Lori Hussong.
“We had many chances to do just that and statistically outplayed Bryant, but came away with a very disappointing result,” said Hussong. The defense held Bryant to only five shots, two of which were on goal, and freshman goalie Lena Vandam made one save. At 42:20, Bryant defender Keighan Richardson was awarded a penalty stroke, but Vandam blocked it.
Opening MAAC play with a loss was not the ideal situation for the Broncs; however, Hussong said it will not hinder the team going forward. “Losing to Bryant gives us very little room for error the rest of conference play,” she said. “Every game forward is important if we want to qualify for the playoffs.”
On Oct. 1, the Broncs found themselves on the other side of a shutout after a 2-0 win against Colgate. Their offense got off to a fast start against the Raiders, with senior forward Allison Baligian opening the scoring at 13:02 with an unassisted goal, her fifth of the season. Freshman defender Eline De Jong followed with the second goal of the game, in the second half at 54:39. The goal was De Jong’s fourth of the year.
As a unit, Rider’s offense had 18 shots, 11 of which were on goal. he Broncs had 14 penalty corners, as opposed to the Raiders’ one.
Rider’s defense held stout once again versus Colgate, limiting the Raiders to only five shots and one on goal. Vandam stopped that shot and recorded her second shutout of the season.
The field hockey team will return to action on Oct. 5 when they host La Salle at Ben Cohen Field at 4 p.m.
