Those who have been following the New Paltz Field Hockey team this season can all agree on one thing: it has been pretty exciting watching this team come together.
On Saturday, Oct. 2, the Lady Hawks traveled to SUNY Oswego where they yet again crushed their opponents, handing the Lakers a 4-1 loss. So how did they do it?
The match kicked off with fourth-year Ryan Dowling taking her spot at the goalpost for the Hawks. It was show time. In usual fashion, second-year forward Morgan Woolley was out there making moves, and scored a goal within the first five minutes. A minute after, second-year forward Hannah Ackerman brought the Hawks to an early 2-0 lead, assisted by both third-year back Julia Cummings and fourth-year midfielder Jessica Ascencao.
“Team chemistry is so important when it comes to scoring,” Ackerman said. “Each of us are unique in our skills and abilities so knowing our teammates strengths is how we find success. We work as one strong unit so we need each individual’s contributions from endline to endline to get the ball in the back of the cage.”
Both New Paltz and Oswego had some fouls during the first two periods, but the Hawks were shooting way more than the Lakers, showcasing its dominant offense that became a staple of their season. In total there were 74 total fouls given in the game: 41 on Oswego and 33 on New Paltz.
In period three, Woolley scored again. Oswego did not have much going for them until 36:13, when they finally slotted a goal, bringing the score to 3-1.
Ackerman rounded out the day with another goal in period four, defeating Oswego for the 12th time in a row. In the end, New Paltz had 24 shots compared to Oswego’s 12, with 16 being on goal compared to the Lakers’ six.
Although a sophomore, this is technically Ackerman’s first season after last year’s cancellations. She said after last year she really learned the importance of leaving everything out on the field. She was also elated to have contributed two goals in the game.
“There’s nothing like the feeling of celebrating with my teammates after scoring,” Ackerman said. “I was proud of myself, but [of] my teammates even more as we came out really hard and got goals on the board early.”
This team now has an overall record of 7-2 and 2-0 in the conference. On Saturday, Oct. 9 at 1 p.m., New Paltz is hosting the Cortland Dragons: one of their toughest competitors who they have not beaten since 2018. Do they have what it takes to turn it around? We will certainly find out soon.
“New Paltz Field Hockey is beyond ready for Cortland. We strongly value competition throughout everything we do, so we are excited for the challenge. It has been awhile since we played them, but during that time we have been training really hard all year round for these big games,” Ackerman said.
