Tribe Outlasts Lock Haven in Season Opener

Freshman Rebecca Wagner scored the first two goals of her W&M career, including the game winner in the second half.

08/25/07 3:00PM

Williamsburg - Spurred by a three-goal second half, the William and Mary field hockey team outlasted defending Northeast Conference Champion and NCAA Play-in Game participant Lock Haven, 4-2, with its depth. On a day sweltering with heat where the temperature on the Busch Turf reached over 110 degrees, the Tribe used 19 different players and received three second-half goals from the freshman forward duo of Rebecca Wagner and Jenna Cinalli to pull out the season-opening win.

“Anytime you can come away with a win in this kind of weather against a quality team, it is good,” W&M head coach Peel Hawthorne said. “Lock Haven is a good team that will compete at a high level overall and in its conference. I was pleased with the fact that we got the chance to play so many people in different positions. Our goal in the preseason was to have our players understand the game and be capable of playing anywhere on the field. We took a step in that direction and really mixed our lineup a lot today.”

After a first half deadlock, the Tribe was the first to break through in the second stanza. In the 40th minute, senior forward Kim Hedley carried the ball into the circle, sliding a pass to the left. Sophomore midfielder Wesley Drew made a diving attempt at the ball, but was denied by the Lock Haven goalkeeper. While the Tribe did not score, they did garner a penalty corner, which it would cash to take the lead. After a stick stop by senior Jes Kacerek, fellow classmate Laura Kastelic ripped a shot toward the right side of the cage. Wagner notched her first career goal, redirecting the ball over the goalkeeper and into the center of the net.

Senior goalkeeper Gwen Hunter ended the game with two saves, but came up big on a pair of occasions in the second half. In the 50th minute, the Eagles top returning scorer Blair Wynne controlled the ball in the midfield and drove down the right side of the field into the circle. She ripped a shot toward the left post, but Hunter was there to kick the attempt away and preserve the one-goal Tribe advantage.

Wagner struck again to push the Tribe advantage to 3-1 nearly 10 minutes later. Drew slotted a shot from the left side the circle, but her attempt was denied the Lock Haven goalkeeper. The ball spilled over to a waiting Wagner, who pushed in it for her second marker of the game.

Lock Haven wasted little time drawing back within a goal, scoring two minutes later. Wynne fed the ball forward to Suzanne Hobart for a breakaway. Hobart slotted a shot into the left side of the cage to cut the Tribe lead to 3-2.

Hunter came up big for the Tribe in the 63rd minute. Wynne again broke free after controlling the ball in the midfield. She pushed the ball too far out in front, allowing Hunter to come out and kick the ball away thwarting the Lock Haven scoring chance.

W&M put the game out of reach for good in the 68th minute. Hedley again carried the ball into the area, only to have it poked away by the Lock Haven goalkeeper. The ball ended up with junior midfielder Lauren Giles, who flipped a shot toward the right post. Cinalli met the ball and pushed it across the goal line for her first career tally in the green and gold.

W&M outshot Lock Haven, 13-9, including a 9-4 advantage in the second half. The College held the advantage in shots on goal, 10-4. The Tribe also led the penalty corner category, 10-5, including a 7-1 cushion in the second half.

The Tribe broke through first in the opening half of play. In the 17th minute, the Tribe earned a penalty corner, and a scramble in front of the cage ensued. A Lock Haven defender knocked the ball away from a Tribe player, but it found the waiting stick of Hedley. She tallied the first goal of the Tribe season and the 12th of her W&M career, punching it into the left side of the cage.

The Eagles drew even less than three minutes later. After W&M sophomore Courtney Farino had an attempt in front of the Lock Haven cage denied, the Eagles got a breakaway opportunity up the right side of the field. Sam Stoyer slid the ball across the area from right to left, and Amy Hordendorf finished into the left side of the boards.

The College will return to action on Sunday, Aug. 26, when it hosts America East foe Fairfield. The Stags opened the season with a 4-1 loss at VCU on Aug. 25. The Tribe-Stag match is slated for 11 a.m. at Busch Field.

Box Score (HTML)