October 26, 2008

BRYANT TOPPLED BY RUTGERS, 6-0, SUNDAY AFTERNOON

Boxscore

PROVIDENCE - Despite tough defense and hard work Sunday afternoon, the Bryant University field hockey team fell short, falling to No. 20 Rutgers, 6-0, at Providence College in their second-to-last game of the season.

The Bulldogs had a tough time getting adjusted to the quick play of the Scarlet Knights out of the gates, giving up a trio of scores in the first seven minutes of play.

Jessika Hoh got the scoring started just 3:39 into the game when Amy Lewis fed the ball to the right post where Hoh was waiting to put it past junior goalkeeper Kundayi Mawema (Harare, Zimbabwe) for a 1-0 lead.

Less than two minutes later, Jill Beck deflected a Jenna Bull shot into the Bryant cage to score her first goal of the year and give visiting Rutgers (13-5) a two-score advantage.

Sarah Dunn made it 3-0 in the seventh minute before the Bulldogs (1-16) settled in to keep the Scarlet Knights from scoring again until the 23rd minute, when Lewis made good on a rebound bouncing around in front of the net for a goal of her own and a 4-0 score entering halftime.

The Bulldogs kept the Rutgers offense at bay for most of the second frame, allowing just a pair of goals to the nation's 20th-ranked squad, both off rebounds. The first came just over 11 minutes into the second half off the stick of Heather Garces, who also scored her first goal of the year, and the final tally came in the 67th minute, when Karen Brewster found net for the 6-0 final.

The Scarlet Knights, led by 12 shots from Lewis, outshot the Bulldogs, 35-3. Two of Bryant's shot came off sophomore Elise Boissoneau (Ashburnham, Mass.) with the other coming from senior Lauren Alexander (Simsbury, Conn.).

Mawema made 14 saves in the losing effort, while her Rutgers counterpart, Lauren Decerbo, made one stop.

The Bulldogs round out their inaugural Division I season next Sunday, November 2 when they travel to Loudonville, N.Y. for one final bout against Siena College. Game time is 1 p.m.