By Kirsten McKenna
After a tough loss to Old Dominion on Saturday, the Pride defeated the William and Mary Tribe on Sun., Oct. 7 with a score of 2-0. Junior goalkeeper Nadine Surak recorded her first career shutout and Kristin Thompson scored her first goal of the season as the field hockey team improved their record to 6-7 on the year and 2-3 in CAA play.
Thompson attacked and executed quickly as she stole the ball away from a Tribe defender to score on a breakaway against W&M goalkeeper Gwen Hunter at 6:23 into the game. Thompson said, “We know the importance of scoring first and scoring early, and I was determined to score my first goal of the season.”
Coach Kathy De Angelis stressed the importance that lies within the opening minutes prior to Sunday’s match. She said, “We wanted to be a scoring threat.” The Pride remained dominant and threatening throughout the first half as Brit Blankmeyer rebounded the ball nearly two minutes after Thompson’s goal, to score her sixth goal of the season.
According to Thompson, the team hasn’t had any trouble executing the new strategy. She said, “Each game we go out and try to capitalize on our chances.”
Though the team has been working with a few different strategy systems, the offensive system they have been practicing within the last month proved most effective in Sunday’s match. Thompson believes the team has had no trouble executing the new strategy. She said, “As a team, we pressured and attacked, and our pressure paid off.”
Exemplifying a strong effort defensively as well as offensively, Surak and the defense held the Tribe to one shot on goal during the first half of the match. Surak, who earned the start after Saturday’s game against Old Dominion, was impressed with the overall effort of the defense. She said, “They [the defense as a whole has been playing really well together, and as I spend more time in the cage, I become more confident.”
In Saturday’s game against Old Dominion Surak and Krisha Giammarco each took a turn in the net for a half. According to De Angelis, Surak earned the start. She said, “They each have their strengths and weaknesses, and one of them has to step up as a leader, but Surak has been consistent.”
Proving her consistency on Sunday, Surak made five saves and did not allow any goals. Recording her first shutout in her collegiate career, she said, “All season, I have been dying to shutout, but it wasn’t in the cards before.”
Held scoreless in the first half, the Tribe would reenter the match with rejuvenation, attempting two futile shots at the beginning of the second half. Though the Tribe only had one shot on goal in the first half, they attempted a total of ten shots in the second period.
The Tribe edged the Pride 7-6 in penalty corners during the second half. The Pride however held on to the first half lead of 2-0 until the end of the match and prevailed victorious. Coach De Angelis said, “This weekend was all about performance.”
Displaying a strong performance over the weekend against William and Mary, the girls remain relentless and supportive of each other. Surak said, “I see all of the work my teammates do, scoring the goals and I am going to do everything I can to not let anything in the net for the rest of the season.”
In order to improve their record above the .500 mark, the team is taking it one game at a time. As they head into the match against Columbia on Wed., Oct. 10, De Angelis said, “We don’t want to look past any kind of match- up. Even non- conference games are crucial, we’re not changing our play.”
Forward Charlia Warner fights for control of the ball in a recent field hockey practice. The Pride managed to split a pair of CAA conference match-ups this past week, bouncing back from a loss against Old Dominion with a key victory over William & Mary. (Natalie Placek)