The women’s field hockey team concluded a disappointing season with a pair of road losses last week. First, the Red Hawks fell 4-1 to ninth-ranked Middlebury College on Wednesday, October 26. Then, on Saturday, in a game postponed from earlier in the season when league officials didn’t show, RPI dropped a 6-2 decision to St. Lawrence.
Middlebury’s Reid Berrien scored a hat trick, including two in the first half to lead the Panthers. Junior Andrea Flynn scored RPI’s only goal. The Panthers out-shot RPI 39-6, and had nine penalty corners to RPI’s two. Senior goalie Amanda Lund made 16 saves for the Red Hawks in the loss.
RPI took an early lead against St. Lawrence on Saturday, when sophomore Michelle Clemente scored on a rebound in the first half. The Saints’ Carling Delaney tied the score, and then Saeger Philpot put them up, 2-1.
Freshman Kristiina Baker tied the game up with less than 15 minutes left in the first half. The two teams were even at the half, with St. Lawrence holding an 11-10 edge in shots.
In the second half, the Saints took over. They out-shot RPI 16-7 and scored four unanswered goals, with two from Jill Merrigan. Lund finished the game with 14 saves for the Red Hawks, and two Saints goalies combined for 11.
With the losses, RPI finishes the season with a 6-10 record that includes a 1-6 Liberty League mark. The lone league win was a 2-1 decision over crosstown rival Union. The team compiled non-league victories against Nazareth, Hartwick, SUNY Geneseo, Utica, and Oswego State. The Red Hawks’ 1-6 record means the team finishes in eighth place in the Liberty League.
The top four teams made the league playoffs. This year, those teams are, in descending order: William Smith, Skidmore, Rochester, and Union.
Despite the finish, there is a bit of a silver lining for the Red Hawks. RPI’s top five scorers are all either freshmen or sophomores. Freshmen Sara Stylinski (six goals) and Baker (five goals, two assists) led the way with 12 points apiece, while sophomore Sarah Merlin (four goals, one assist) and freshman Lisa Pak (two goals, five assists) each totaled nine, and Clemente notched eight (three goals, two assists).
