The Oswego State field hockey team split their past two games on the road, losing 5-0 to SUNY Cortland on Oct. 8 and capturing a 3-1 win against Nazareth College on Oct. 11. The Lakers record moved to 7-6 on the season after their split over the past week as they head into their most crucial portion of the season.
In their Oct. 8 matchup against Cortland, the Lakers came out flat and could not get anything to go right for them on either side of the field. Offensively, this was the third time that the Lakers have been shut out this season and for the first time in conference play. Defensively, it was the worst performance from Oswego State all season, the five goals that they surrendered was the most goals they have allowed in a single game so far in the 2022 season. In fact, the five goals scored by the Red Dragons was the most the Lakers have allowed in a single game since the 2019 season, just a truly uncharacteristic performance from this team. Cortland got the scoring started in the second quarter when Kierra Ettere scored her second goal of the season followed by a Carolena Purpura goal to finish off the half. The second half was not much different from the first half, the Red Dragons scored three goals, two from Jamie Snyder and one from Elizabeth Pratt, to make the score 5-0.
The tides turned for Oswego on Oct. 11 when they faced off against Nazareth, picking up a solid 3-1 victory. An all around bounce back performance for the Lakers, scoring three goals after not scoring any in their previous game and only allowed one goal after giving up five. It was a stalemate throughout the first three quarters, the game was tied 0-0 heading into the fourth. Nazareth’s starting goaltender Madilyn Satter was subbed out at halftime after stopping all four of the shots she faced and Mackenzie Halliday took over the crease in the second half.
The Lakers flipped the script in the final quarter when they put three goals past Halliday, ultimately leading to a 3-1 win. The scoring began when Molly Darcy scored her first goal of the season just over a minute into the fourth on an assist from Kailtlyn Mastracco. Mastracco would make the score 2-0 after she put home her 15th goal of the season, but Nazareth’s Hannah James responded just 15 seconds later when she scored to make it a one goal game again. Kacie Simzer’s SUNYAC-leading 13th goal of the season with just less than five minutes to go made the game 3-1 and would seal the deal for the Lakers.
The Lakers now sit 7-6 with a crucial final three games to go, they finish up their season with games against SUNY Brockport, SUNY Geneseo and Morrisville State in their finale. The Lakers would have to do some serious damage in their next three games if they were to make it to the SUNYAC playoffs, they are in a tough position due to the fact that they have not won any conference games this season. The remaining games on their schedule could even be considered a must-win because there is so little margin for error.
The Lakers begin their important stretch on Oct. 15, at 1 p.m. when they take on SUNY Brockport at Laker Turf Stadium.
Image via Oswego Athletics
