Score: Elmira College 2, Nazareth College 1
Records: Elmira (3-14, 1-6 E8), Nazareth 2-16, (0-7 E8)
Location: Pine Valley, N.Y. -- Murray Athletic Center

PINE VALLEY, N.Y. -- The Elmira College field hockey team ended the 2017 regular season on a high note, as the Soaring Eagles scored twice in the second half to complete a 2-1 come-from-behind victory over Nazareth College on Saturday afternoon.

On the day the Purple and Gold recognized the Class of 2018, several seniors came up big to guide the Soaring Eagles to the win in the final games of their collegiate careers. Katie Carroll '18 assisted on the game-tying goal, which was scored by classmate Megan Brain '18. Fellow senior Sarah McCaffrey '18 tipped in the game-winner late in the second half. In addition, Julie Hockenberger '18 made seven saves while playing all 70 minutes in the cage.

Although neither team scored in the opening half, it was the Golden Flyers who controlled possession throughout most of the period. Despite Nazareth's efforts to keep on the ball on their half of the field, Hockenberger recorded five of her seven stops in the first half to preserve the scoreless tie.

The Golden Flyers continued to maintain the upper hand for the majority of the second half as well and broke through to take a 1-0 lead in the 42nd minute. Naz's leading scorer, Jessica Livesey, collected a pass from Jennifer Hilts on the right side of the shooting circle and beat Hockenberger with a hard shot to the far side of the cage.

EC began ramping up the pressure on offense midway through the period. Between the 51st and 53rd minutes, the Soaring Eagles were awarded a pair of penalty corners, which resulted in a trio of shots, but none found their way into the back of the cage. Sensing the need for urgency, Elmira Head Coach Lauren Silva then called a timeout with 12:06 remaining. Her pep talk was exactly what the Soaring Eagles needed, as they responded to even the score at 1-all less than a minute later. Carroll saved a ball that nearly rolled out of bounds through the end line and passed it to Brain in the middle of the field. Brain's shot was partially blocked, but that helped it bounce over the blocker of Nazareth goalie Kimber Nourse and into the cage.

With the momentum on their side, the Purple and Gold then made good on the second of back-to-back penalty corners in the 65th minute. McCaffrey entered the ball to Emily Selbert '20, who ripped a shot from the top of the arc towards the left post, where the senior defenseman tipped in the game-winning goal.

In search of the tying goal, the Golden Flyers had one final penalty corner in the 68th minute, but senior midfielder Atu Machika '18 laid out to block Livesey's shot to prevent it from reaching the cage.

In Their Own Words…
Head Coach Lauren Silva on the comeback victory in the season finale…
"It was very exciting and I know it made for a very special day for our seniors in their last game on our field."

Coach Silva when asked about her conversation with the team during the late timeout…
"I reminded them that we had enough time to get on the board, but we needed to work together and push hard to score the initial goal."

News and Notes

• Elmira concludes the 2017 campaign with a 3-14 overall record.
• The win over Nazareth was the first Empire 8 Conference triumph for the Soaring Eagles, who went 1-6 against conference foes this season.
• Two of EC's three wins in 2017 came on its home field at the Murray Athletic Center.
• Saturday's win was the first for Elmira against Nazareth in 11 seasons, with the last such victory coming on the road in October of 2006.
• Brain and McCaffrey each collected their first goal of the season, while Selbert earned her first assist of the year.
• Carroll's assist on Brain's goal was her team-leading sixth of the year, tied for fourth-most all-time in a single season.
• Carroll moved into a three-way tie for fifth place all-time in program history with 11 career assists.
• With seven more saves versus Nazareth, Hockenberger will graduate in fourth-place in the EC record books with 433 career saves.
• Hockenberger also ranks fourth in career wins with eight.