BEAR — St. Elizabeth’s field hockey game at Hodgson on Oct. 8 did not get off to the best start for the Vikings. Mere minutes into the game, the Silver Eagles took the lead off a penalty corner when Ryleigh Souder found the ball in a scramble in front of Vikings goalkeeper Julie Aranilla and tucked it in for the 1-0 lead.
But St. Elizabeth — playing with the minimum 11 players — regained its composure, and it didn’t take long for them to get that marker back. Approximately three minutes after Souder’s goal, the Vikings stole a pass in the Hodgson end of the field. Mackenzie Hilferty sent a shot into the scoring circle, and Samantha Shields was their to redirect the ball into the cage to level the score.
The Vikings took control of the game, and the work paid off later in the first. After an unsuccessful penalty corner, the Vikings came up with another steal. This time, Alyssa Pope fired a crossing pass through the crease to a waiting Maddie Shields, who knocked the eventual game-winning goal into the cage.
Before the first period ended, the Vikings added three more corners, and they had one to begin the second, but they could not add to their advantage. The Silver Eagles played a few minutes with a one-player advantage after St. Elizabeth had someone sent off for an equipment violation, but the Vikings’ defense held.
Hodgson applied a bit of pressure in the early going of the second half, but this was St. Elizabeth’s day. The Vikings missed on a few shots, but their defensive effort made the two goals stand up.
St. Elizabeth (2-6) will face Archmere on Sunday night at 6:30 at Rullo Stadium at the University of Delaware as part of the Turf Bowl. The Silver Eagles (2-7) travel to Newark for a 3:45 p.m. start on Wednesday.
All photos by Mike Lang.
