Box Score
Box
Photo Gallery (courtesy of Dan Ceccacci)
SCRANTON, Pa.—It was a historic night for senior midfielder Alyssa Fania (Annandale, NJ/North Hunterdon) in her final regular-season game at Fitzpatrick Field Tuesday evening.
She scored three goals in leading The University of Scranton field hockey team to its third straight win, a 4-2 victory over Vassar College. In the process, she became the fourth player in Royals’ history to score at least 100 points in a career, joining Denise Atkinson (125 points, 1982-1983, 1985), Judy Grimaldi (119 points, 1985-1988) and Traci Zarbatany (117 points, 1986-1989).
Fania scored twice within an eight-minute span as the Royals jumped out to a 3-0 lead before the Brewers, now 11-5, got on the scoreboard in the 44th minute on a goal by sophomore forward Hayley Beach (Latham, NY/Shaker), who deflected a previous shot attempt senior midfielder Enya Cunningham (Stroudsburg, Pa./Stroudsburg) past Scranton senior goalkeeper Krista Mundy (North Caldwell, NJ/West Essex) on a penalty corner.
Less than two minutes later, Fania converted a penalty stroke for her team-leading 18th goal of the season to give Scranton a 4-1 cushion. Cunningham set the final score by converting a penalty stroke in the 56th minute.
The Royals, who held a 16-10 advantage in shots and a 12-7 margin in penalty corners, opened the scoring in the 14th minute when junior Alyssa Whitman (Bethlehem, Pa./Saucon Valley) tipped in a previous shot attempt by junior midfielder Krista Osborne (Blue Bell, Pa./Gwynedd-Mercy) that got past Brewer junior goalkeeper Amreen Bhasin (Cresskill, NJ/Riverdale), who finished with four saves.
Moments later, Vassar sophomore defender Sophie Arnold (Merion, Pa./Lower Merion) came up with a defensive save on a shot attempt by senior midfielder Kathleen Keale (Wall, NJ/Wall) to stop another Royal scoring opportunity.
Mundy finished with five saves for Scranton, whose defensive back line of seniors Jessica Pankey (Pompton Lakes, NJ/Pompton Lakes), Michelle Lennon (South Walpole, Mass./Walpole) and Bridget Brady (Plymouth Meeting, Pa./Mt. St. Joseph Academy) allowed only five shots on goal.
Fania’s 18 goals so far this season are the most by a Royal since Rosanne Calvani scored 19 in 1992. Atkinson set the Scranton single-season record with 25 goals in 1985. Fania now has 104 points in her career (41 goals, 22 assists). Osborne was credited with two assists tonight and is now second on the team behind Fania in scoring this year with 38 points on 16 goals and six assists.
The Royals, now 13-4, will play their Landmark Conference regular-season finale this Saturday, November 1, against Elizabethtown College in Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania, beginning at 1:00 p.m.
--ROYALS-
