The Lafayette field hockey team captured the 2011 Patriot League Championship with a 3-1 victory over fourth-seeded Bucknell today at Jacobs Field. Deanna DiCroce ’13, Patriot League Offensive Player of the Year, scored twice for the second-seeded Leopards.
The Patriot League champion field hockey team after the win against Bucknell
Lafayette (11-8, 4-1 Patriot League) continues its season Tuesday when it travels to Athens, Ohio, to take on the Mid-American Conference Champion, Ohio University. The game is scheduled for 1 p.m.
Watch an interview with the team
Carolyn Cabrey ’12 earned Tournament Most Valuable Player honors. DiCroce, Emily Valeo ’13, and Brittany Blass ’15 joined her on the Patriot League All-Tournament team.
Read the box score
Each team had its share of scoring chances in the opening 35 minutes, with Lafayette finally breaking the ice with 2:28 to play in the half. Maria Machalick ’13 gained possession on the near sideline and swept a pass through the circle that found DiCroce on the far post. She put her stick on the turf and directed the ball into the cage, giving the Leopards a 1-0 lead that they took into the break.
The advantage was short-lived for the Leopards as Bucknell’s Mallory Smith evened the score with 32:10 to play. Smith collected a deflected pass behind the Lafayette defense and chipped it over a sliding Jessica Deutsch ’15for the goal.
Carolyn Cabrey '12 assisted on the game winner and was named Tournament MVP.
Lafayette quickly regained the lead less than three minutes later. Cabrey fed a ball into the center of the circle from straightaway and Kristin Heaney ’14ran onto the pass and flicked it over Bucknell goalie Erica Perrine into the top left corner of the cage. Heaney’s tally was her fourth of the season and proved to be the game winner.
After surviving two Bucknell penalty corners with 17 minutes to play, Lafayette extended its lead at the 13:43 mark. DiCroce carried the ball along the far goal line and took a touch inside before slipping a shot past Perrine. DiCroce’s second marker of the match put Lafayette ahead 3-1 and held up to be the final score.
Lafayette controlled the game statistically, taking 11 shots compared to seven for the Bison. The Maroon and White earned five corners while Bucknell (8-11, 3-2 Patriot League) had three. In goal for Lafayette, Deutsch made five saves while Perrine stopped two on the other end.
The Leopards have scored the first goal of the game in 14 of 19 contests this season. In those games, Lafayette owns an 11-3 record.
8 Comments
Go Pards – the “stick” is working!!! Take it to Ohio!
Many congratulations to Women’s Field Hockey! You’ve worked tremendously hard, and you should all be very proud of this moment in your lives. Best wishes!
Way to go Pards!!! Congrats to the Team and your awesome goalie Mara!!! You’ve all worked so hard. All the best for the Championships!
Great job! We all know how hard you work on the field and in the classroom.
Good luck at the championships!
These young women are perfect student athlete representatives. They are an asset to the institution and a source of pride for the entire Lafayette community!!!
Go ‘Pards!!! This is terrific news! Congratulations to one and all!
Prof. Michelle Geoffrion-Vinci
FLL Dept.
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