WEST LONG BRANCH, NJ – Senior Cori Allen (Gibbsboro, NJ/Eastern Regional [Iowa]) converted a penalty stroke early in the second half and sophomore Casey Hanna (Seaville, NJ/Ocean City) added an insurance goal in the 68th minute as the Monmouth University field hockey team held off Villanova, 3-1, Sunday afternoon at So Sweet A Cat Field. With the win, the Hawks third-straight victory in the series with the Wildcats, MU improves to 2-1 on the year, while VU slips to 1-3.
“It's great to get this win, our second of the weekend, against a very good Villanova team,” commented head coach Carli Figlio. “They [Villanova] are a really good test for us and we were lucky to come away with the win.”
Monmouth nearly got on the board eight minutes into the affair when sophomore Meg Donahue (Wyomissing, PA/Berks Catholic) connected on a backhanded blast from the left side that was batted out of the air by Villanova's goalie, Erika Miller. Freshman Teresa Warner (Lower Hutt, New Zealand/Sacred Heart) got the Hawks on the board in the 25th minute as she connected on a diving, backhanded shot low into the far post to give Monmouth a lead it would eventually carry into break. The marker was Warner's second in as many games.
The Wildcats turned up the attack to start the second half, generating multiple corner opportunities and evened the score six minutes into the frame when, off a broken penalty corner play, Courtney Devine sent a cross in front of the cage to Francesca Bello.
Monmouth responded 6:30 later when Warner's shot from the left side led to a penalty stroke opportunity. Allen lined up and sent a low shot inside the left post to put MU back on top, 2-1. Allen, who is perfect 3-for-3 in penalty strokes since joining MU last season, registered her second career game-winning goal.
The Blue and White added an insurance marker with 2:23 left in regulation on a corner play. Junior Alyssa Ercolino (West Long Branch, NJ/Shore Regional) sent a pass to sophomore Julie Laszlo (Rotterdam, Netherlands/Rotterdams Montessori Lyceum) on the left side where she sent a hard, low shot towards the far post. Hanna dove and got a stick on the ball, sending it high into the netting for her second goal of the season and fifth of her career.
Sophomore Christen Piersanti (Bridgewater, NJ/Bridgewater-Raritan) earned the win in cage for the Hawks, making three saves, while Miller suffered the defeat despite turning away five shots.
Monmouth outshot Villanova 11-8, including 8-1 in the opening half, while Wildcats held a 8-6 advantage in penalty corners due in part to creating seven chances in the second half compared to one for MU.
Monmouth hits the road this Wednesday, September 9th when it travels to Piscataway for a meeting with intrastate rival Rutgers. Opening whistle is slated for 4 p.m.
-@MonmouthFH-
(Photo Courtesy of Jack Flaherty Photography)
