Rider field hockey drops below .500 amid postseason

By Kadie DiGiuseppe and Liliana R. Basile 

Rider field hockey lost both of its games over the weekend, including its 3-1 loss to Merrimack College on Oct. 24 and its 2-1 loss to Lehigh University on Oct. 26, extending its losing streak to three games with only one regular season game left. 

Off-beat offense

On Oct. 24, the Broncs traveled to North Andover, Massachusetts, to take on another Northeastern Conference opponent, the Merrimack Warriors.

Rider’s offense immediately got to work, including senior forward Semra Said, who connected on the first goal of the game less than three minutes into regulation. 

However, the Warriors quickly responded and tied the game off their first shot of the day two            minutes later. 

Rider took a couple more shots at the goal, but it was not enough to keep up with Merrimack after they obtained their second of the game, leading Rider 2-1 going into the second quarter. 

The Broncs offense controlled most of the second quarter, but was unsuccessful for every shot and penalty corner they took. 

Looking to turn things around in the second half, Rider’s offense stayed attacking the Merrimack goal. 

In the fourth quarter, the Warriors iced the game with the final goal with less than 10 minutes left, handing the Broncs a 3-1 loss, their second in a row. 

Rider outshot Merrimack 22-7 and had 15 more corner opportunities. With the loss, Rider moved to 4-4 in NEC play. 

“We’ve been doing a good job trying to score and trying to finish. Now, we let the other teams get less chances than us,” senior forward Valeria Perales said. 

Sophomore starting goalie Jade Regnart had two saves during the afternoon match while senior defender Megan Normile led the team with eight shots. 

“There are games you should win and this was one of them,” Head Coach Gina Carey-Smith said. “At the end of the day, if the opposing team works harder than you and plays harder than you, it doesn’t matter how much skill you have.”

Hard fought battle

Rider field hockey ended their second to last game of the regular season losing 2-1 at Lehigh University’s home field on Oct. 26. 

The game took place at noon, with the Lehigh Mountain Hawks hosting the Broncs on a chilly, but sunny morning. 

Rider came into the first quarter hot. By the end of the first 15 minutes, they had four penalty corners, all made by Perales, and four shots on net. 

In the last 15 minutes of the first half, two more penalty corners were added to the scoreboard by Perales. In total, seven fouls, seven shots, six penalty corners and four saves were accounted for by the end of the first half.

Going into the second half scoreless put pressure on both teams and the wet turf did not help either team get closer to scoring and finding the back of the net.

In the third quarter, the Mountain Hawks scored first with six minutes on the clock, but the Broncs were not far behind with an answer. Three minutes later, Normile scored for the Broncs, tying the game 1-1. The assist went to Perales. 

Going into the fourth, Rider had a total of 10 shots, made seven saves, seven penalty corners and nine fouls. 

With two more penalty corners by Perales and three more shots taken by the Broncs, the Mountain Hawks found the upper hand and were able to score to get the lead of 2-1. 

Rider ended up taking out their goalie, Regnart, and putting in junior midfielder Sarah Fitzpatrick, giving Rider the upper hand in offense. 

In the last couple minutes of the game, Rider was able to hold their own, but, unfortunately, could not find a score to tie the game. 

“We played our style of Rider field hockey and we played well together as a group,” Normile said.

Rider has a chance to clinch the fourth and final seed of the tournament, but is currently tied with Sacred Heart University and Stonehill College. 

Knowing that this could be the seniors’ final game as Broncs, they are relishing in the fact that the team is in good hands. 

“It’s bittersweet closing this chapter, but everything happens for a reason,” Normile said. “They’ll be great next year. We have an amazing group of girls.”

The Broncs will play its last regular season game in Staten Island, New York, against Wagner University on Oct. 31 at 3 p.m. who has already secured its spot in the NEC tournament.