Field hockey shines in pair of convincing wins

Shippensburg University’s No. 2 nationally ranked field hockey team moved to 6-0 on the season, beating No. 1 Kutztown, the defending NCAA Division II champions, 2-0 on Wednesday before pummeling Slippery Rock 10-1 on Saturday.

The week began with a road matchup on Wednesday, seeing the Raiders take on the Bears in a matchup of the top two Division II teams in the nation. The game was scoreless after the first quarter until senior Nya Gilchrist scored with an assist from junior Agus Garibaldi to put SU ahead 1-0.

The score remained at 1-0 into the fourth quarter, until Garibaldi came through with her fifth goal of the season to put Shippensburg ahead 2-0, which would be the final score.

Shippensburg outshot Kutztown 9-5 in the match. The Raiders’ defense allowed only three shots on goal. All were saved by redshirt junior goalkeeper Emma Albee. The match’s result all but guarantees SU will be ranked No. 1 in the nation when the new coaches’ poll releases on Tuesday.

SU’s next game saw the Raiders dominate Slippery Rock at home, outshooting The Rock 36-4 on their way to a 10-1 win. Seven different Raiders scored in the match, and every player on the roster saw game action.

The Raiders did not take long to get on the board, as Garibaldi scored off an assist from senior Emilia Conners just 3:05 into the match. Senior Valu Paul scored her second goal of the season later in the first quarter to put Shippensburg ahead 2-0.

Shippensburg scored another pair of goals in the second quarter, starting with the first of the season from senior Yasmin De Meyer. Junior Lilly Cantabene struck next, putting SU ahead 4-0 at the half via her first goal this season.

SU added four more goals in the third, beginning with freshman Anne Garder scoring off an assist from Garibaldi. Less than one minute later, freshman Avery Austin scored her first collegiate goal. Garibaldi then scored her second goal of the match before sophomore McKenna Boyle scored to make it 8-0 Raiders.

The fourth quarter saw Paul’s third goal of the season to add to SU’s lead before Gardner scored with 30 seconds to go. It was the first time the Raiders scored 10 points this season.

SU field hockey has only one game on the schedule this week, a home matchup against Bloomsburg at 1 p.m. on Saturday at Robb Sports Complex. This serves as the first of nine conference games for the Raiders this season.