Box Score BETHLEHEM, Pa. – The University of Scranton field hockey team (13-1, 5-1 Landmark) put together a frenetic rally in the fourth quarter, but fell just short in a 2-1 loss to the Moravian Greyhounds (11-3, 5-1 Landmark) in conference action on Saturday afternoon at Makuvek Field in Bethlehem.
Scranton sits tied with the Greyhounds at the top of the Landmark Conference standings with one league game remaining for each team next Saturday.
The Royals mounted some pressure offensively right out of the gate as Moravian goalie Brooke Wilkinson made three saves in the first 3:52 of the game and added a fourth save later in the quarter, but the game remained scoreless for the time being. Scranton nearly took the lead on a crazy sequence of play in the 27th minute as the Greyhounds made three defensive saves off shots from senior Allie Benadon (Hillsborough, Pa./Hillsborough), junior Marissa Campbell (Sunbury, Pa./Line Mountain) and sophomore Katie Redding (Havertown, Pa./Haverford) to send the game into halftime scoreless.
Moravian struck on just their second shot of the game in the 37th minute as Onalee Long found the back of the cage after an initial shot by teammate Emily Wells to open the scoring. Just under four minutes later, Wells fed Ava Edwards who scored her conference-best 16th goal of the season to extend the lead to 2-0. Scranton would not go quietly however and nearly got on the board in the 47th minute as the Greyhounds made their staggering fourth defensive save of the game on an attempt from senior Shaelin de Wit (New Tripoli, Pa./Northwestern Lehigh). Redding beat Wilkinson in the 52nd minute to get the Royals with her 12th goal of the season that cut the lead to 2-1 and nearly struck again with a shot that rolled just wide of the cage in the 57th minute. The Royals battled until the final whistle and forced Wilkinson to make a save with just over a minute to play.
Scranton held a 22-4 shot advantage in the contest led by seven from Redding and five from freshman Reagan Dolan (Broomall, Pa./Bonner & Prendergast).
Junior goalie Clare Maguire (Oreland, Pa./Mount Saint Joseph Academy) made one save for the Royals, while Wilkinson tallied seven on the afternoon for Moravian.
The University of Scranton field hockey team looks to bounce back as they return home to host No. 15 Vassar in a non-conference matchup on Wednesday night at Weiss Field. Action is slated to get underway at 7 p.m.
--ROYALS--
