NEWARK, Del. - The Monmouth University field hockey team dropped a non-conference tilt at the University of Delaware, 3-1, Wednesday night at Rullo Stadium. Graduate Tara Brown (Hatboro, Pa./Archbishop Wood) scored her first goal of the season in the opening half for the Hawks (0-7), but the Blue Hens (2-5) answered with three second-half goals, including two from Nikki Onorato, to come away with the victory.
Halfway through the first frame, the Blue and White registered a quality scoring chance when senior Michelle Pieczynski (Doylestown, Pa./Central Bucks West) collected a turnover in the offensive zone and sent a backhanded try on cage which got passed Delaware's keeper Sarah Scher. Defender Janell Holmes dove to the near post and pushed the ball over the end line to keep the game scoreless.
The Hawks earned the first-half lead in the 22nd minute as Pieczynski found Brown at the top of the circle, 15 yards out, where she connected on a backhanded shot for her first goal of the season, giving Monmouth a 1-0 lead it would take into the break.
Just over five minutes into the second stanza, the Blue Hens converted a penalty corner opportunity. MU goalkeeper Teresa Mathews (Lumberton, N.J./Rancocas Valley) made the initial save on Toni Popinko's blast from the top of the circle, but Tony Sharpless connected with the rebound while falling to the ground for the equalizer. A deflection by Onorato five minutes later gave the Hens their first lead of the night.
Onorata got her stick on another shot off a penalty corner which deflected over a sprawling Mathews in the 54th minute to extend Delaware's advantage to 3-1.
Mathews made seven saves for the Blue and White, while her counterpart, Scher, turned away five Monmouth shots.
The two squads finished even with eight corner opportunities a piece, while Delaware held a slight advantage in shots, 15-14.
Monmouth returns home this Saturday as it welcomes its second top-10 opponent of the season to So Sweet A Cat Field as it takes on No. 6 Penn State, beginning at 2 p.m.
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