Keuka Park, N.Y. – The Elmira College field hockey team opened Empire 8 play with a road victory on Saturday afternoon, managing to hold off Keuka in a back-and-forth battle (4-3).
LEADERS
Talia Nash led with three goals, including the game-winning goal, while
Madison Fleming added one goal and one assist.
Aubrey Smith finished with four shots on goal and one assist while
Riley Dutcher added two shots on goal.
Elara Rodriguez recorded 10 saves in the cage as EC finished with 18 shots, 13 on goal, and seven penalty corners.
PLAY-BY-PLAY
The Soaring Eagles wasted little time finding the back of the cage, with Fleming opening the scoring at 7:26. Elmira continued to pressure the Keuka defense, seeing Nash double the advantage at 11:50, finishing off a feed from
Aubrey Smith for the 2-0 advantage at the end of the first quarter.
Keuka answered early in the second quarter, cutting the deficit to 2-1 at the 21:00 mark. The Soaring Eagles quickly responded on the offensive end, with Nash finding the back of the cage for the second time at 24:16 to restore Elmira's two-goal lead and send EC into the half with a 3-1 lead.
Keuka came out of the halftime break with pressure, scoring twice in the third quarter to pull even at 3-3.
Elara Rodriguez came up with five saves during the quarter, helping Elmira weather the attack and keep the game tied heading into the final 15 minutes.
Keuka continued to pressure early in the fourth, but Rodriguez turned aside three shots in the opening minute. Elmira then regained the lead at 47:03 when Nash completed her hat trick, scoring off an assist from Fleming to put the Soaring Eagles ahead, 4-3. EC continued to create opportunities in the closing minutes, with Dutcher hitting the post before having another shot denied by a defensive save. Rodriguez made two more saves in the final minutes to secure the 4-3 victory for the Soaring Eagles.
UP NEXT
Elmira returns home to Campus Field on Wednesday, September 23 to host SUNY Brockport in another E8 showdown. Game time is slated for 7:00 PM.
For the latest and most up-to-date information on Elmira College Athletics, please visit athletics.elmira.edu. Follow us on Twitter - @ECSoaringEagles, Instagram - @ecsoaringeagles, YouTube - @ECSoaringEagles, and Facebook by searching Elmira College Athletics.
