Score: Elmira College 4, Keuka College 0
Records: Elmira (2-6), Keuka (0-7)
Location: Murray Athletic Center – Elmira, N.Y.

ELMIRA N.Y. -- Elmira College field hockey picked up its first home win of the season with a 4-0 victory over Keuka College on Wednesday at the Murray Athletic Center in the first of a four-game homestand.

Elmira set the tone early in the non-league game, wasting little time before applying pressure in the attacking third. The Soaring Eagles produced seven penalty corner opportunities and four shots in the first 10 minutes of action, before converting on their eighth corner and fifth shot attempt to take a 1-0 lead. Atu Machika '18 opened the scoring in the 11th minute, when she redirected a shot from the arc by Alison Mariano '18, who received the initial feed off the corner from Sarah McCaffrey '18. Both Mariano and McCaffrey were credited with assists on the game-opening, and eventual game-winning, goal.

McCaffrey and Machika both tallied one goal with two assists for four points. The four points are a career-high for McCaffrey and a season-high for Machika. A native of Lambertville, New Jersey, McCaffrey continued her strong sophomore season with her third multi-point outing of the year and the her sixth of her career.

The Soaring Eagles continued to apply pressure when Megan Brain '18 scored off of a rebound of Machika's close attempt in the 26th minute, the first of the season for the Frederick, Maryland native. The third-year forward was able to capitalize off of the confusion in the front of the cage to bury the ball for the score.

Julia Derco '17 scored the Soaring Eagles' final goal in the 67th minute with a laser from the top of the arc after she received the corner entry from McCaffrey. That goal extended Derco's goal-scoring streak to three consecutive games, a career-long for the senior defenseman.

Goalkeeper Julie Hockenberger '18 posted her first clean sheet of the season, saving all seven of the shots that got to her. It marked the third career complete-game shutout for the junior goalie, who's performances on EC's home field continue to shine brightly this season.

Turning Point
The turning point of the contest seemed to be from the opening whistle. The Soaring Eagles dominated the Wolves in all facets of the game from the start, unlike their previous home games this season. EC lost its first home game, 2-1, to Oswego State after losing a one goal lead and giving up the game-winner in double overtime. Elmira's second home loss was a tight 1-0 contest against Houghton College, in which the game's lone goal came with no time left. After losing the first two contests at the MAC in heart-breaking fashion, the Purple and Gold grabbed the lead early, kept it for the entire 70 minutes, and snuffed out any comeback opportunities Keuka may have had.

In Their Own Words
Head Coach Lauren Silva on EC's first home win of the season…
"It feels awesome to come away with the 'W'; we've had a challenging season. Last year, we struggled to win at home, so it feels good to get this win. It's something that we want to build on."
 
Silva on her team's offensive outburst against the Wolves…
"Despite some dips, I think they were hungry, especially at the end, as evident by scoring two goals in a span of about a minute. I also think that the corners worked in our favor today."
 
Silva reflects on another great performance at home from Hockenberger…
"I assume playing at home brings out a little more pride in our play and the desire to defend our home field here. We've had the help of (student assistant coach) Calum Edsor '19 with our goalies this season, so I think that Julie has really benefited from that as well. She's also been coming in to watch film to understand what her mistakes were and how she can fix them."
 
Silva on using the win over Keuka to motivate the team moving forward…
"I think that the win is more proof of how their effort, teamwork, and hunger to win can help them do just that, come away with a win."

Inside the Box Score

• EC held a 20-to-12 advantage in shots and a 13-7 advantage in shots on goal.
• Elmira also held a sizable 17-to-6 advantage in penalty corners.
• Four different Soaring Eagles scored a goal for EC.
• Machika and McCaffrey led the way with one goal and two assists apiece.
• Brain and Derco each tallied once.
• Mariano also picked up an assist for the EC offense.
• Hockenberger recorded a clean sheet with seven saves.
• Alyssa Orsino and Madison St. Onge each took three shots for Keuka.
• Three different keepers saw time in goal for the Wolves.

 
News and Notes

• With the win, Elmira improved its record to 2-6.
• EC now holds a 2-0 advantage in the all-time series against Keuka.
• The win as the first at home for the Soaring Eagles this season.
• Four goals, five assists, and 13 shots on goal are all season highs for EC.
• It marks Elmira's first contest with four or more goals since 2012.
• The four points earned by Machika and McCaffrey mark season highs for both student-athletes.
• Brain's goal was her first of the season.
• The clean sheet was EC's first since the Purple and Gold blanked Oswego State in October of last season.
• Hockenberger earned the third complete-game shutout of her career.
• Hockenberger lowered her home goals-against average to 0.91 in three starts at the MAC this season.

 
Up Next
The Elmira field hockey team is back at the MAC for the second game of its season-long four-game homestand on Saturday, October 1st, when the Soaring Eagles host SUNY Geneseo. The non-conference bout is scheduled for a 1:00 p.m. start.