MORRISVILLE, N.Y. – The Morrisville State College field hockey team opened the 2017 season Saturday, suffering a 5-2 setback to visiting Castleton State College on Drake Field in Morrisville.
Castleton, who held a slim 23-20 shot margin on the day, made their first strike within minutes of the start of the game, as Sarah Wells put home the rebound off the initial shot by Gabriella Hunt for the 1-0 lead just 4:16 into the contest.
Minutes later, Morrisville State's Emily Hunt (Harpursville, N.Y.) evened the score with the right post sweep at 11:50, as Lauren Kellum (Eaton, N.Y.) collected the penalty corner feed, carried the ball into the center of the circle, before chipping it over to Hunt who was waiting on the right post.
Castleton regained the lead at the 20:37 mark with their second score off a rebound shot, this time off the stick of Mia Sanborn, a 2-1 lead that withstood through the halftime period.
In much similar fashion as the first half, the Spartans struck quickly, capitalizing on a penalty corner. Emily Lowell inserted the ball to the top of the circle to a waiting Rachel Holland who drove the ball into the right corner of the cage for the score, 2:12 into the second.
They added to their total in the 44th minute on a reverse stuck touch that got past Gottung, with Cydney Jeffrey collecting the score off an assist from Casey Trail.
Morrisville State was able to get one back at the 48:10 mark, as Haley Evarts (Irondequoit, N.Y.) collected her first collegiate score to make it a 4-2 ball game.
Castleton put the game away at 51:29 with their fifth tally of the day, another off the rebound Mustang keeper save. Mariah Linnett registered the goal, with an assist from Jeffrey.
Gottung recorded the loss in cage for the Mustangs, turning away eight in 48:10 of play, before Joelle Freiermuth (Marcy, N.Y.) finished out the final 21:50 with one save.
Morrisville State returns to the field tomorrow, hosting Elmira College at 1 p.m. on Drake Field.
Morrisville State College's curricula are enriched with applied learning and pave the way for opportunity at both the Morrisville and Norwich campuses. An action-oriented, interactive learning lab, the college is a national leader in technology and has been lauded for its exemplary, innovative and effective community service programs.
The college was ranked among the Best Regional Colleges in the North by U.S. News and World Report Best Colleges 2016 issue and was also recognized in the Top Public Schools, Regional Colleges North in the 2016 Best Colleges rankings. For more information about Morrisville State College, visit www.morrisville.edu.
#30#