WILMINGTON — Ursuline’s field hockey team played plenty of defense on Sept. 22 when Delaware Military Academy came to visit Serviam Field, but on this windy afternoon, the Raiders also got the offense going. The Raiders scored their first two goals of the season, and that was enough for a 2-1 victory that got them into the win column.
The Ursuline players celebrated after the game, gathering in a large pile, with goalie Elizabeth Ciarlo at the bottom.
To get to the celebration, however, the Raiders had to withstand numerous Seahawks scoring opportunities. The Seahawks had a bunch of penalty corners, but Ciarlo made several stops. Ursuline put one shot on DMA goalie Ashlee Feeley in the first.
The offenses cooled down in the second until the Raiders earned their first two penalty corners. On the second, Clare Fowler sent a shot in that was saved by Feeley, but Samantha Weinert banged away at the rebound, eventually knocking in it for the goal and the lead.
The Raiders looked to be taking that advantage into halftime, but DMA got its final corner in the final seconds of the half. The running clock expired as the Seahawks lined up, but per the rules, they were allowed to finish the play. Taking the inbounds pass from Margot Kuennen, Sidney Ziegler found an opening and tied the score.
DMA controlled the offense throughout the third, but neither team could score. Ursuline successfully defended five Seahawks corners.
The Raiders opened the fourth with possession, and they went right to work. Olivia O’Hara sent a long pass into the scoring circle, and Noelle Barnak got enough of the ball to send it rolling over the goal line.
That was just 30 seconds into the quarter, so the Raiders still had more than 14 minutes to hold off the Seahawks. The Raiders got some good defense, including a poke check that stopped one DMA opportunity. Ursuline had the ball for most of the final few minutes, and they kept it away from DMA to seal the win.
Ciarlo had eight saves for the Raiders (1-4), who travel to Sanford on Sept. 26 at 4 p.m.
The Seahawks had a 9-7 shot advantage, and they had 15 penalty corners to three for the Raiders. Feeley stopped five shots. DMA (1-3) starts a five-game stretch at home on Sept. 26 at 6:45 p.m. against Tome (Md.).
All photos by Mike Lang.
