The Bridgewater women’s field hockey team won both of their games this past week, beating the Royals of Eastern Mennonite by a score of 2-0 and the Marlins of Virginia Wesleyan in overtime by a score of 3-2.
Eagles Win Against Rival the Royals
The Eagles dominated the offensive half of the field during the opening 15 minutes against the Royals. Freshman Olivia DeWan came close to breaking the deadlock at the five-minute mark, but the Royals goalkeeper, Courtney Crawford, made a huge save to keep the game tied. Junior Daphne Daymude later had a couple of shots in a row on target but were all blocked by Gracyn Arruda, which gave a penalty corner for the Eagles.
Arruda continued to show outstanding form, saving shots from both sophomore Kylie Amberger and Daymude. The first period ended with Daymude having two more attempts, which were blocked by the Royals.
The Eagles forced the Royals to make eight saves in the first quarter, keeping the game scoreless as it entered the second period. The second quarter saw the momentum remain firmly in the Eagles’ favor. Freshman Rylie Flick’s shot on goal was saved by Arruda. However, the first half ended with a score of 0-0.
The Eagles were finally able to score early in the third quarter. Junior Hassmilyn Delarosa scored her first goal by scoring on a penalty corner from senior Meredyth Rankin. Flick’s shot on goal let Delarosa be able to follow up with a rebound shot, giving the Eagles a 1-0 lead. The Eagles kept up the pressure in the offensive zone, giving them an impressive fourteen shots in just fifteen minutes, with 10 of those on goal. The Eagles held a 1-0 advantage going into the fourth quarter.
The Eagles still continued to keep up the offensive pressure, adding another eleven shots. Arruda continued to come up big for the Royals making some big saves until Daymude picked up a loose ball and buried it into the back of the net with just under a minute left in the game. This goal extended the Eagles lead to 2-0. The Eagles would continue to hold on and win.
Eagles Win in Overtime Versus the Marlins
Daphne Daymude got the game going for the Eagles as she had an early shot on goal. The game remained evenly matched until Daymude was able to score a goal giving the Eagles a 1-0 lead to close the first quarter.
The lead doubled in the second quarter as Amberger found the back of the cage, extending the Eagles’s lead to 2-0. The Marlins had an opportunity off of a penalty corner, only to have their shot saved by freshman Ashley Nau. The Eagles fired back with a penalty corner from Rankin that led to a shot from Flick that barely missed. The Marlins kept fighting but the Eagles still led 2-0 after 30 minutes.
The Marlins came out of halftime ready to play, with Ava Stauch receiving an assist from Shannon Gaffney to cut the score to 2-1. The Eagles and Marlins kept battling, but the score stayed 2-1 by the end of the period.
The Marlins came back in the fourth quarter as Katherine Druiett tied the game at 2-2 just a minute into the fourth quarter. Druiett had another opportunity, but Nau came up with a huge save. Flick then had a shot on goal that was saved by the Marlins goalie. As time dwindled, the Marlins earned a penalty corner, leading to a shot from Druiett, but Nau came up with a huge save sending it to overtime.
In the first overtime, there was not much action, with neither side managing a shot on goal or a penalty corner. The score remained 2-2 after 70 minutes. The Eagles got a penalty corner in the second overtime that gave them a huge opportunity. Flick’s shot ended up being saved, but shortly after, Amberger scored her second goal of the game, and the game winning goal, which gave the Eagles the win by a score of 3-2.
