BETHLEHEM, Pa. – The Moravian College and William Paterson University field hockey teams needed 91 minutes to decide a winner on Saturday afternoon at Rocco Calvo Field, and the Pioneers came away with the 2-1 victory in double-overtime.
The squads battled back and forth in the first half, but both defenses shined as the match went into halftime in a scoreless tie. William Paterson got on the board first with a deflected goal in the 59th minute. Sophomore midfielder Rebecca Hamel equalized for the Greyhounds in the 58th with a phenomenal penalty stroke, tying the game at one apiece. The score remained tied at the end of regulation, forcing the extra time.
The Pioneers (4-1) got the sudden-death game-winner with 10 minutes remaining in the second overtime period.
"You never want to be satisfied with a loss," said head coach Amy Endler. "William Paterson is a very good team from a good conference. I was so happy with our effort and the way we fought back, and the way we fought in overtime was terrific. I'm pleased with what we accomplished today, but we always want to get that win."
Hamel scored her first goal of the season to draw the Hounds even. The penalty stroke was rocketed above the Pioneers' goalkeeper as the momentum of the match began to swing in Moravian's favor.
The usually reserved Hamel was ecstatic after the goal as her teammates rallied around the sophomore on their way back to their half of the field.
"Becca is so unassuming," Endler said. "She goes about her business and plays the game so well. She always has a good stroke in practice. We called her number and the goalie had no chance. I was pleased to see her reaction too; she doesn't usually show emotion. It was a well-earned celebration."
The Greyhounds (3-2) found another small victory on Saturday in forcing the overtime periods thanks in large part to a defensive save in the 62nd minute by senior defender Erin Gilbert, who stuck her stick out at the right time to block a shot while senior goalkeeper Andrea Eck was out of the box.
Eck also did everything she could to get the Hounds a win, saving 10 shots and turning away all but one of William Paterson's 19 penalty corners, including seven in the game's first 15 minutes.
"Andrea and the defense were focused and we did a lot of that work this week in practice," Endler said. "We were keen on what their plan was. We knew that they wanted to get tips in rather than direct shots. We defended it well and stayed focused the whole time. We didn't get sucked out of our positioning."
The game-winner came in the 91st minute when a Pioneer forward slapped the ball out of midair. It took one bounce on the way into the cage to end the game.
Moravian had a great chance to get the game's first goal in only the 2nd minute, when the Greyhounds were granted their first of two penalty strokes in Saturday's match. Sophomore midfielder Kelly O'Donnell's stroke was saved by a diving William Paterson goalkeeper.
"Penalty strokes are a rare thing in field hockey, so to get two was amazing," Endler said. "We do practice them, but in the heat of the moment it's kind of tricky. We gave Kelly a chance after she forced the play on a breakaway. We give her credit for getting us to that spot. It was a pressure packed situation and I was confident in her abilities."
Senior forward Keriann Badessa put all of her five shots on goal in the double-overtime loss. The Pioneers outshot the Greyhounds 18-14 in the marathon match.
Endler is hoping her squad will be hungry for a rebound win after a thrilling overtime game. They will get their shot at redemption on Tuesday, September 17 when they travel to Albright College for a 7 p.m. non-conference match.
