Box Score

GENEVA, N.Y.—The 19th-ranked William Smith field hockey team scored three times in the first half on the way to its fifth consecutive victory by a score of 3-1 over visiting Ithaca College. Six different Herons factored into the scoring.

William Smith (5-0) dominated the first half, outshooting the Bombers 16-3. First-year Taylor Cappello celebrated her birthday by seizing a share of the team scoring lead. In the 14th minute, classmate Melanie O'Connor took a shot that was blocked but tricked behind the Bombers' goalie. Cappello was there to push it across the goal line for her sixth tally of the season.

In the 26th minute, the Herons scored off a penalty corner. Sophomore Annie Kietzman inserted to senior Tempe Newson, who stopped the ball for junior Kiersten Hamilton. Hamilton's drive from the top of the circle gave William Smith a 2-0 lead.

Less than four minutes later, senior Natalie Blauvelt took a pass from classmate Sarah Gall and knocked it home for her first goal of the season and a 3-0 advantage going into halftime.

Ithaca (3-2) played much tighter defense in the second half, narrowing the gap in shots to a 9-7 deficit. Penalty corners were nearly even—William Smith had an 8-7 edge—but the final corner of the game cost the Herons the shutout.

With no time on the clock, the Bombers worked the ball from the left side of the cage over to the right where Senior Mia Muzio fired a shot on frame. Sophomore Julia Conroy tipped the ball into the cage for her first goal of the season.

William Smith sophomore goalie Taryn Little made four saves to earn the victory, while Ithaca sophomore Kelly Singleton made 11 stops, including eight in the first half.

The Herons will be back in action on Saturday, Sept. 18, when they host Manhattanville in the first match of the annual William Smith Classic. The contest is slated to begin at 2 p.m.