Broncs split NEC matchups, remain over .500 in conference play
By Joey Poto
Rider field hockey team has gotten off to a hot start in the Northeast Conference, starting the season 2-1 in conference play as they split their games, first beating New Haven University 4-1 on Sept. 25, then losing to Quinnipiac University on Sept. 26, 5-1.
Battle of the horses
The Broncs demonstrated a dominant performance against the Chargers, where they started off hot with the first shot of the game being a goal for junior forward Amanda Walker.
Just a minute later, junior goalkeeper Jade Regnart was put under pressure when she made her first save, and later in the period, made a save off a Chargers penalty corner.
Redshirt sophomore forward Samantha Biondi would have her shot saved and senior defender Emma Bonshak had hers blocked, leaving a 1-0 Rider lead through one.
New Haven was immediately stampeded in the second period with a pair of penalty corners within the first minute of the period.
Bonshak forced a save and missed wide on the first, then, not long after the second, Biondi had her shot saved.
Sophomore midfielder Ryleigh Damminger took only six minutes to double the Broncs’ lead when she beat two defenders to create space and score.
“I tried really hard to start this game off with lots of energy,” Damminger said. “I tried my best to have lots of offensive momentum in this game.”
Rider would extend their lead to three not long after when freshman midfielder Ella Lewis scored just two minutes later.
The rest of the period was pretty quiet, as the two teams combined for only three shots, with Reganart adding two more saves.
Facing back-to-back penalty corners in the third period, Regnart tallied another as she continued to hold it down in net for the Broncs.
“Jade is an unbelievable player, but she is also great at organizing the team,” Damminger said. “When Jade makes awesome saves, I believe it fuels our team more, having her in goal is a great asset to our team.”
Bonshak’s next shot forced a save and, later, after back-to-back Rider penalty corners, Bonshak’s shot missed wide of the net.
In the final period, the Broncs surrendered its first goal to the Chargers less than four minutes into the period, however, senior forward Liv Cox scored the final goal of the match.
Head Coach Gina Carey-Smith credited her team’s work in practice that contributed to their success against New Haven.
“We focused on fundamentals like receiving, passing, scoring and disciplined defense,” said Carey-Smith.
Late period scores
The first period of the game started out very slow for the Broncs’ offense, as the team did not generate a shot until over 11 minutes against the Bobcats on Sept. 27.
Regnart made two saves throughout this period and Bonshak’s shot that broke the streak was saved.
Despite this, it seemed that the first period would end tied at zero, but instead, with about 30 seconds left in the period, a foul allowed Quinnipiac to have a penalty strike, where the Bobcats scored to take a 1-0 lead.
The second period was much more physical than the first, as both teams committed multiple fouls and were unable to produce shots.
Similarly to the first, it seemed that this 15-minute period would result in no score, but the Bobcats got a late corner penalty for a 2-0 lead into halftime.
Throughout the half, Rider’s offense could not keep up with Quinnipiac, as they trailed the shot totals 9-3 at half.
In the third period, it was more of the same, as a shot from Walker, which was saved, and a pair of Bonshak attempts would not result in a score.
Between those chances, Quinnipiac broke through, once again, nearly adding a fourth, if not for Regnart making another save.
This goal made for a 3-0 Bobcats lead and pushed the Broncs’ hopes of staying undefeated further away.
The final period saw both teams score as Quinnipiac got their fourth score early in the period, with Rider eventually responding with a goal from freshman forward Caroline Mauer to break the shutout.
The Bobcats would quickly respond with their fifth goal, marking the last goal of the match, as the Broncs would fall, 5-1.
Bonshak mentioned capitalizing on created chances in order to get the offense rolling.
“We were able to create opportunities offensively, but we just couldn’t finish them,” Bonshak said. “Going into the next game, we just need to be more gritty and want to get the ball into the back of the net.”
Rider will play another conference game on Oct. 2 against Merrimack University before taking a small break from conference opponents, where they face off against Lock Haven University on Oct. 4.
