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Red Hawks upset Herons, 2-1 in 2OT
November 13, 2002
GENEVA, N.Y.—Rensselaer junior midfielder Mary Roy’s (Columbia/Rensselaer, N.Y.) goal in the second overtime lifted the Red Hawks to a 2-1 upset of William Smith College in the quarterfinal round of the ECAC Mid-Atlantic Region Field Hockey Tournament this evening under the lights of AstroTurf Stadium. The Herons were the tournament’s top-seed, while RPI was seeded eighth.
The hosts struck first when senior forward Sheila McKevitt (Clinton/Clinton, N.Y.) scored at the 24:24 mark off an assist by senior midfielder Amanda Arpé (Greely/E. Falmouth, Mass.). The goal raised McKevitt’s career total to 43, tied for fifth on the all-time list. She completed her career with 104 points, tied for seventh all-time.
William Smith led 1-0 at halftime.
After the break, Rensselaer (12-6) began to turn up the pressure on the Heron defense, until junior forward Jessica Butler (Carmel/Carmel, N.Y.) broke through at 54:20. The Red Hawks put six shots on goal in the second frame after managing just two in the first 35 minutes.
Neither team was able to solve the other’s defense before the end of regulation forcing overtime. In the first extra session, William Smith had the best scoring opportunity. With 47 seconds remaining in the period, senior Neely Wakeman (Holderness School/Cohasset, Mass.) was awarded a penalty stroke. She sent a seemingly perfect shot towards the lower left corner, but senior goalie Cathy Hotchkiss (White Plains/White Plains, N.Y.) made a spectacular kick save to preserve the tie.
The Herons (14-7) managed the first two shots of the second overtime, but again Hotchkiss proved up to the task. She finished with seven saves.
Rensselaer created a breakaway opportunity as the clock ticked inside 8 minutes. William Smith junior goalie Jessica Kulesa (Garden City/Garden City, N.Y.) came out to play a pass touched too far ahead, but Roy was there to collect the rebound and drive home the game winner.
Kulesa looked sharp in goal, registering nine saves.
The Red Hawks will face fourth seeded Juniata on Nov. 16, at a site to be determined. The Eagles advanced to the semifinal round this evening with a 1-0 win over Montclair State.