SCRANTON, Pa. – Senior Katie Redding (Havertown, Pa./Haverford) scored the go-ahead goal with just over six minutes to play and The University of Scranton field hockey team (11-2, 5-0 Landmark) pulled away from the Wilkes University Colonels (7-6, 2-3 Landmark) in a 4-1 victory on Wednesday night at Weiss Field in Scranton.
In the 54th minute, Redding deflected a shot by freshman Maggie Keys (Centerport, N.Y./Harborfields) and found the back of the cage for her second goal of the game and 12th of the season to give the Royals a 2-1 lead at the time.
With the victory, Scranton remains unbeaten in Landmark play and sits tied atop the conference standings with Susquehanna.
Scranton had a couple of chances in the first quarter, but Wilkes goalie Carly Eidle turned away shots by Redding and sophomore Annie Shaw (Exton, Pa./Villa Maria Academy) as things remained scoreless for the time being. The game remained deadlocked at zero until the 23rd minute when Redding blasted a shot home off a penalty corner feed by senior Cori Davis (Millerstown, Pa./Greenwood) to give the hosts a 1-0 edge that held at halftime.
Shaw nearly extended the lead in the 32nd minute as Eidle tallied consecutive saves and then Wilkes evened the game in the 36th minute with a goal from Morgan Hermanofski. Just over a minute later, junior Reagan Dolan (Broomall, Pa./Bonner & Prendergast) saw her shot hit the post following a penalty corner and the game was tied at one at the end of three quarters. The Colonels' Courtney Keim recorded a defensive save in the 48th minute which set the stage for Redding's go-ahead goal later in the quarter. In the 58th minute, Redding's shot was turned away by Eidle and Shaw buried the rebound to make it 3-1 and Keys then added an insurance goal of her own in the final minute of regulation on an assist from Dolan.
The goal was Shaw's fifth of the season and Keys' third.
Head coach Colleen Moyer's team held a 17-3 advantage in shots led by five from Shaw and junior goalie Gianna Travia (Havertown, Pa./Cardinal O'Hara) earned the victory in net.
For her career, Redding ranks second all-time in program history in assists (21), tied for second in points (119) and tied for third in goals (49).
The Royals will host Juniata on Senior Day on Saturday afternoon at Weiss Field with start time slated for 1 p.m.
--ROYALS--
