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William Smith wins Liberty League field hockey title
November 7 , 2004
GENEVA, N.Y.—The top-seeded William Smith field hockey team won the Liberty League Championship over second-seeded St. Lawrence University this afternoon at McCooey Field. The Herons, ranked fifth in the latest coaches poll, faced single goal deficits twice, but prevailed 3-2 to earn the program’s 15th NCAA Tournament bid.
William Smith (16-2) trailed 1-0 and 2-1, but rallied to tie the match at the 41:56 mark. Sophomore forward Sophie Dennis (Dana L. West/Port Byron, N.Y.) started the play with a shot on Saints’ first-year goalie Emilie Lannamann (Proctor Academy/Durham, N.H.), who made the stop, but the rebound went right to Heron sophomore defender Liz Saucier (Old Town/Old Town, Maine). Lannamann finished with 18 saves, including 13 in the first half.
Saucier fanned on her first attempt to score, but the miscue may have helped her cause. As the defense reacted to the first attempt, she was able to regroup for a second swing that sent the ball into the back of the cage.
Just over seven minutes later, Dennis sent a cross into the circle that senior forward Lily Gillett (Wheeler School/Seekonk, Mass.) one-timed for her seventh goal of the season for the Herons’ first lead of the afternoon.
From there, William Smith’s defense, which features four All-Liberty League selections, limited St. Lawrence (10-7) to just three shots, only one of which made it as far as junior goalie Sue Jordan (Boothbay/Boothbay, Maine), who finished with two saves.
The Saints opened the afternoon’s scoring when sophomore forward Saeger Philpot finished a mad scramble in front of the cage for her fifth goal of the year at the 26:37 mark.
Junior back Lauren Fuller (Shaker/Loudonville, N.Y.) tied the contest less than a minute later with a blast from the top of the circle on a penalty corner set up by Dennis and junior midfielder Amy Kuzio (Clinton/Clinton, N.Y.).
St. Lawrence claimed its final advantage shortly before halftime, when Philpot sent a cross from the right wing to a charging Ali Mattison (Tabor/Osterville, Mass.), who scored her fifth goal of the season.
The conference championship is the sixth for the Herons since the Liberty League was formed in 1995. William Smith will find out later tonight when and where the team will make its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2001.