Syracuse tied with UConn atop conference in field hockey

As the UConn field hockey team’s season begins to heat up, so do their competitors for the Big East tournament. The six teams played eight games this weekend for some big wins and also a few upsets.

The No. 6 Georgetown Hoyas took an early lead against the No. 2 Louisville Cardinals on Friday, slipping in two goals within the first 11 minutes of the match. The Hoyas couldn’t hold on to their lead, losing 4-2 to the Cardinals. Louisville attacked Georgetown’s two goalies that played this game, Briana Pereira and Emma Hamstra, with 22 shots on goal compared to Georgetown’s three. The Hoyas continued their stifling downward spiral on Sunday, losing 7-1 to Miami. The first four consecutive goals were scored by Miami, giving them an early 4-0 lead well before halftime. Miami’s 18 penalty corners, compared to Georgetown’s three, resulted in three of the seven goals for the victory.

No. 5 Villanova was severely outplayed by our own UConn Huskies, losing 1-0 in their game on Sunday. UConn outshot them 28 to one and had 12 penalty corners. compared to Villanova’s one. Yet out of the 15 shots on goal, Villanova’s goalie Alex Diekmann saved 14.

The No. 4 Rutgers Scarlet Knights played two games this weekend, winning one game and losing the other, to bring their season record to an overall 5-5. Rutgers started their weekend off with a tough loss against the No. 1 Syracuse Orange on Friday. With three goals in each half, Syracuse beat Rutgers 6-0. Yet Rutgers managed to bounce back, beating Cornell 4-3 in overtime Sunday. Regulation time was evenly matched between the two teams. But in the overtime period, Rutgers dominated the field. Christie Lonsky’s second goal of the game, a rebound from her own shot, led the Scarlet Knights to their third overtime victory this season.

No. 3 Providence lost 3-2 against Boston College on Sunday, bringing their record to an overall 5-3 on the season. The first two goals were scored by Chapin Duke and Virgynia Muma to give Boston a 2-0 lead at halftime. Providence fought back early in the second half with a goal scored by Steph Guglielmo at 39:10, but couldn’t keep the pace up enough for a comeback.

The No. 2 Louisville Cardinals had a successful weekend, beating both Rutgers and Kent State. On Sunday, Kent State scored their first goal three minutes into the game off a penalty corner. Louisville was quick to respond. Five minutes after Kent State scored, Louisville got their own penalty corner and added in their first goal of the game to tie the score at 1-1. In the second half, Louisville added in four more goals to defeat Kent State 6-1.

Syracuse, tied for the No.1 spot with UConn, advanced their undefeated record of 9-0 with a huge win against Princeton on Sunday. Syracuse’s two second-half goals left Princeton with their very first loss of the season, leaving Syracuse and UConn as the only two unbeaten teams remaining in NCAA Division I. Syracuse’s goalie Leann Stiver had six saves in the game, shutting out not only the nation’s top-scoring offense but also the nation’s top scorer, Kathleen Sharkey. Syracuse outshot Princeton 16-10, proving their dominance as a team. With such a huge win this weekend, Syracuse is UConn’s top competition. Such stiff competition from all the Big East teams will result in an exciting rest of the season and a battle until the very end.