Robbins Scores Twice as Field Hockey Secures ECAC Tournament Berth With 3-1 Victory at Newberry
Box Score NEWBERRY, S.C. (Oct. 30, 2016) – Powered by a career-high two goals from sophomore Angela Robbins (Linwood, N.J./Mainland Regional), the Mercy College field hockey team secured an ECAC Field Hockey League Tournament spot with a 3-1 victory over Newberry College on Sunday afternoon at Setzler Field.
The Mavericks (7-11, 2-6 ECAC) have now set a school record for wins in a season, surpassing last season's total of six. The Wolves (6-11, 1-7 ECAC) end their season having lost four of their last five games. Mercy has earned the No. 4 seed in the ECAC Tournament and will take on No. 1 seed Lindenwood University on Friday, November 4th in Newberry, South Carolina at a time to be announced.
Robbins now has four goals on the year, while senior Jackie Ballin (Cupertino, Calif./Cupertino) scored her team-leading eighth goal of the year. Seniors Vanessa Soler (Port Monmouth, N.J./Middletown North) and Olivia Anderson (Port Washington, N.Y./Paul D. Schreiber) and freshman Catherine Brudi (West Islip, N.Y./West Islip) added assists. Sophomore goalie Cheradyn Pettit (Colorado Springs, Colo./Lewis Palmer) made the start and played 45 minutes with two saves to earn the win. Sophomore Julia Amell (Greene, N.Y./Greene) played the final 24:51 of the game and made four saves to preserve the victory.
Newberry received a goal from Daja Graham and Maia Lee added a defensive save. Goalie Dakota Elzy made three saves to take the loss.
After dropping a 2-1 decision to the Wolves on October 2nd in Dobbs Ferry, the Mavericks looked to earn a win over Newberry in the biggest game of the season. Soler forced Elzy to make two saves in the first 15 minutes of action, but the score remained 0-0.
Mercy broke the scoreless tie in the 22nd minute when Brudi sent a cross across the box and Robbins tipped the ball into the left side to give the Mavericks a 1-0 lead. Pettit made a save in the 34th to keep Mercy ahead and the Mavericks headed into halftime with a 1-0 lead.
The second half saw Elzy make a save on a Soler shot in the 40th minute, but Robbins finished off the ensuing rebound on the left side to increase the Mercy lead to 2-0. The Mavericks increased their advantage to 3-0 in the 51st minute when Ballin put away a pass from Anderson, following a penalty corner.
Newberry would take a timeout in the 57th minute and empty the net trying to generate some offense. However, Amell would make three straight saves to keep the Wolves off the board. Newberry finally scored in the 63rd minute when Graham dribbled in and finished on the right side. Time would run out on the Wolves and the Mavericks would emerge with the final spot in the ECAC Tournament.
Newberry held a 19-8 edge in shots and a 12-6 advantage in penalty corners.
Head Coach Deirdre O'Neill and the Mavericks will play No. 1 seed Lindenwood University in the ECAC Tournament on Friday, November 4th in Newberry, South Carolina at a time to be announced.
