College Field Hockey
Rider University 1, Radford University 0
RADFORD, Va.--You knew an 'RU' school would win, it was just a question of which one. In a game that may be described as an 'instant classic' by the time the Broncs arrive back on campus, Rider (7-0) used a goal by freshman Marlaine Schneider (Feasterville, Pa./Neshaminy), four minutes into the second overtime to give the Broncs their seventh straight win of the season at Radford University Sunday afternoon.
"Our team fought through a lot of adversity today and dug down to get the job done," said head coach Lori Hussong. "We were a little tired from yesterday's game (at Appalachian State) and the team stepped up to the challenge of a long road trip."
For Schneider, it was her third goal of the season and it came off a rebound of her own shot after a rush up the field. The teams battled through 89 minutes of physical play before Schneider hit the back of the cage. "All I heard was (sophomore) Megan (Pisani) pass me the ball and scream go in, go in toward the goal," Schneider remembered. "The goalie saved the first shot and I saw the loose ball and had to get it in. We worked very hard and did our best to come home with the win."
"Marlaine's goal was pure hustle," Lori Hussong said. "It was a second effort play It took a lot of heart for her to make that play for us."
Radford (2-4) held the offensive edge for the first 25 minutes of the game with Bronc senior goalie Lyndsie Johnson (Gibbsboro/Eastern) having to make three saves as the Highlanders took five of the first six shots in the game and held a 5-0 penalty corner advantage. Johnson finished with six saves, earning her second shutout in a row and third in four games. Johnson lowered her goals against average to 0.55.
"On a day that we maybe didn't play our best, Lyndsie held us in the game," said assistant coach Dan Hussong. "We play hard every game but we were a little sluggish today. This was one of Lyndsie's better performances. She was up, alive and was a good steady influence. Radford really took it to us in the first part of the game."
"This was a tough game," Johnson said. "Radford came out and wanted to win as much as we did. Neither team wanted to give up on the ball and that challenged us today."
The Broncs countered with three straight shots in the final nine minutes of the first period with Highlander goalie Jennifer Wisniewski making all three saves and the teams remained scoreless at the half. Rider entered the game having out-scored its opponents 17-1 in the first half.
The Broncs came out flying in the second half, with four straight shots in the first 12 minutes, forcing Wisniewski to make three saves. Wisniewski finished with 14 saves as Rider out-shot Radford 17-9.
Back to back yellow cards by Radford gave the Broncs a two-player advantage with 12 minutes left in the game and Wisniewski up to the task again, saving a shot by junior Lindsay Rajeski (New Egypt) with six minutes left in the second half. Back to back shots by Schneider were unsuccessful in the final two minutes of regulation as the teams headed to overtime.
"It was a little nerve racking," Johnson said about the 89 minutes of scoreless play. "We've gelled really well and we kept our composure today and I was actually mentally prepared to go into (penalty) strokes. I was happy we didn't have to but we were prepared if we did."
Rider dominated the first minute of the first overtime, with Schneider launching three shots at the Highlander cage. Schneider finished with a team-high eight shots in 80 minutes of play.
Johnson made her final save of the game, two minutes into the second overtime with junior Margaret Ecke (New Egypt) making a defensive save on the following rebound as the ball was headed toward the roof of the goal.
"The entire defense played tough today," Lori Hussong added. "Ecke was outstanding. She was all over the field and you couldn't ask for a better performance. She made a big play for us when we needed her to. She came out of nowhere and knocked the ball down."
"The defense has come up big in several games this season," said Ecke. "Today meant the most because Radford was a tough, aggressive team and we stayed poised and patient. The defensive save was out of instinct. When we work hard, things like that happen. We worked to bring home two wins this weekend and this is a great way for us to head into the conference games in a few weeks. We just want to keep on rolling."
"Lyndsie was amazing," Schneider said. "She kept us in the game. And the defensive save by Ecke in the overtime was amazing."
Rider has not trailed at point of the 509 minutes played this season.
This was the second meeting all-time in field hockey between the two schools. Last season, Radford defeated Rider 1-0 in the 2008 home opener.
The Broncs host West Chester on September 25 at 4:00pm on the Lawrenceville, New Jersey campus. "It will be nice to get home for a while," said Lori Hussong. "West Chester is a tough opponent and we are going to get home, rest up and get ready to play again on Friday."
-RU-
