HAMILTON – Despite a second-half push by the Colgate field hockey program, No. 19 Syracuse claimed a 3-1 final at Tyler's Field on Sunday afternoon.
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HOW IT HAPPENED
After lots of play in the midfield, Syracuse was able to capitalize on its first penalty corner in the final minutes of the opening quarter. The bouncing ball found the back of the cage for a 1-0 advantage as the teams concluded the opening quarter.
The Orange peppered Colgate's keeper in
Anna Unger with eight total shots in the second stanza, but despite her solid efforts, the nationally-ranked opponent was able to edge one in before the end of the half.
Halftime offered a reset for the Raiders, one they came into the third quarter with an offensive power for a game-high of four shots. It was sophomore
Carter Leahy who tallied Colgate's first quality chance at the back of the cage, but it was stifled by the Syracuse goalkeeper to keep the Orange ahead 2-0. Before the end of the quarter, Syracuse was able to increase their lead with a low swipe to the left side for a 3-0 advantage.
As the clock ticked down on regulation, Colgate was able to generate more chances at the net and its efforts paid off with 6:39 remaining in regulation.
Nicole Salamone sped into the circle to record a shot on goal, effectively taking the keeper out of position. Swooping in from the right side was
Mari Kniezewski as she launched a wide angle shot into the open cage.
Although the Raiders were able to narrow Syracuse's lead, the clock would expire before Colgate could come back in the 3-1 final.
STATISTICAL STANDOUTS
• Behind 12 total saves, including a game-high of five in the second quarter, sophomore goalkeeper
Anna Unger recorded a new career-best in the cage. Her previous career-high was 11 saves against Albany last season (Sept. 1, 2018).
• By notching Colgate's lone goal, freshman
Mari Kniezewski scored her second goal of the season. Her first career goal came against Saint Louis earlier this year (Aug. 31).
• Other shots on goal for the Raiders came by the swing of sophomore
Carter Leahy and senior
Nicole Salamone.
• The Raiders had a strong turnout in the stands for their National Brain Tumor Society Awareness Game, with a season-high of 276 in attendance.
THE BOTTOM LINE
• No. 19 Syracuse 3, Colgate 1
RECORD UPDATES
• Colgate now holds a 2-6 overall record, and a 0-1 mark in the Patriot League.
• No. 19 Syracuse improves to a 6-2 mark, and a 0-1 record in the ACC.
COACH APRIL CORNELL'S TAKE
"We played a full 60 minutes of hockey this afternoon, and our goal was to come out with a strong mindset of being very confident and very aggressive. The team did an excellent job of being 100% in it and being focused no matter who was on the field, what the play was, or what was happening. I loved their focus and energy today.
"
Anna Unger and
Emily Kness both steadied our backfield and gave the team confidence. They really commanded the field, and I love seeing that in the younger players on our team. I'm really excited about their performance and think it will propel the team going forward to Patriot League games.
"We could've created more offensive opportunities. Against strong opponents, our players want to play perfect, but hockey isn't a game of perfect plays all the time so you need to be able to play through mistakes or through a play that may not have worked out as you expected it to. You need to be able to adapt and still make something happen. Our attackers were really determined to be aggressive and feisty to make those plays happen. That's something we're going to continue to build on, because we need to score more goals to be competitive in the Patriot League.
On the week's preparation before continued league play: "Early in the week we're going to watch our film and talk about it as a team. We'll have some high-intensity practice to work on those in-game situations. Sometimes it's easier to go game-to-game, so we need to make it a high-tempo intense week of practice."
UP NEXT
The Raiders return to Patriot League play next Saturday, Sept. 28 when they travel to Easton, Pennsylvania, to take on Lafayette. Game time is slated for a noon start.
FOLLOW THE RAIDERS
For more information on the Colgate field hockey program, follow the Raiders on Twitter @ColgateFH and on Instagram at Colgate_FH.