GENEVA, N.Y. –The William Smith field hockey team dropped a thrilling conference matchup with Skidmore this afternoon, 4-3. With the loss, the Herons fell to 9-9 overall and 3-3 in the Liberty League, while the Thoroughbreds improved to 7-10 on the season and 2-5 in conference play.
The back-and-forth thrilling conference battle saw William Smith fire off 28 shots, landing 18 on target compared to Skidmore's 10 shots and five on target. The Herons earned 12 penalty corners compared to the Thoroughbreds' five, while Skidmore held a 15-1 advantage in saves this afternoon.
Three different Herons scored in the setback. Seniors Ava Vecchione and Kylee Knuschke as well as junior Hadley Harbert each scored goals in the loss. Juniors Ana Dios Vidal and Mia Batchelder each tallied an assist on the afternoon. Dios Vidal led William Smith with seven shots, landing three on target. Vecchione, Batchelder and junior Eliza Freeland added four shots each in the loss, combining for seven on target.
Sophomore Olivia Terranova and first-year Ryan Marsh split the minutes in goal for the Herons. Terranova played the opening 26 minutes and made one save, while Marsh played for 34 minutes and didn't make a save. Marsh falls to 0-3 on the season with the loss.
MATCH MOMENTS:
- William Smith came out strong, firing off eight early shots, forcing Nicole Sylvestri into several saves to keep the Herons off the board.
- The Herons broke the deadlock at the 4:30 mark after being awarded a penalty corner. Senior Leah Griffith inserted the ball to Dios Vidal at the top of the circle. Dios Vidal slipped a pass to Vecchione who fired off a shot past Sylvestri to give William Smith an early 1-0 lead. It was Vecchione's first goal of the season.
- William Smith doubled its lead just over three minutes later after earning another penalty corner. Dios Vidal fired off a shot from the top of the circle that was saved by the Skidmore goalie. The rebound fell to the stick of Knuschke who ripped a shot into the goal to give the Herons a 2-0 lead. It was also Knuschke's first goal of the season.
- The Thoroughbreds responded less than 20 seconds later after a scramble in front of goal resulted in back-to-back shots by Emma Houff. Houff's first shot ricocheted off the post, but she collected her own rebound and sent the ball into the goal to make it a 2-1 game.
- Less than a minute later, Skidmore scored again to tie the game at 2-2. A counterattack led to a shot by Izzy Blake. Her shot took a deflection off a Heron defender which beat Terranova to tie the game up.
- The Thoroughbred's grabbed their first lead of the day at the 22:42 mark after Blake capitalized off a William Smith defensive miscue. Blake collected the clear and took on Terranova one-on-one. After rounding the goalie, Blake slipped a shot into the open goal to give Skidmore a 3-2 lead.
- William Smith put the pressure on offensively in the final minutes of the first half, firing off three shots but were matched by a strong performance from Sylvestri who stood tall and kept the Herons off the board.
- The Herons opened the second half on the offensive front, firing off four shots while holding the Thoroughbreds to just one shot. William Smith maintained most of the possession as it pushed for the equalizer.
- At the 40:51 mark, the Herons broke through to tie the game at 3-3. After being awarded a penalty corner, Griffith inserted the ball to Dios Vidal at the top of the circle. Dios Vidal slipped a pass to Batchelder who fired a shot on target. Harbert deflected the shot past the Skidmore goalie, recording her third goal of the season.
- William Smith continued to push the pace in hopes of grabbing the late lead. The Herons fired off four shots in the opening minutes of the final quarter but couldn't break through to grab the lead.
- Skidmore responded in the 53rd minute after earning a penalty corner of their own. Ella Costa inserted the ball to Erin Ohlenbusch at the top of the circle. Ohlenbusch dished a pass off to Gianna DiGioacchino who ripped a shot past Marsh to give the Thoroughbreds a 4-3 lead.
- The Herons continued to apply pressure, firing off three shots as Skidmore played down due to William Smith pulling its goalie and two late cards. Despite the late pressure by the Herons, the Thoroughbreds stood tall and closed out the thrilling conference battle on top, 4-3.
UP NEXT:
William Smith will be back in action Saturday, Oct. 31, when it travels to Rochester to close out its regular season with a conference matchup at the University of Rochester. Action between the Herons and the Yellowjackets is set for 10 a.m.
