SELINSGROVE, PA (November 2, 2022) – Having earned the second seed in the Landmark Conference and the right to host their semifinal matchup against third-seeded Catholic, Susquehanna field hockey had plenty of positives to bring into the match. Having beat the Cardinals 2-1 in overtime on the road earlier this season, the River Hawks knew to expect a gritty, defensive battle. They certainly got it, scrapping to the very end but ending up on the wrong side of a 1-0 scoreline, with Catholic scoring the only goal in the fourth quarter.

As expected, the defenses were dominant for the majority of the match, with both teams seeing their shooting numbers stifled throughout. There would be just one shot in the first quarter, with Catholic firing wide of the goal, while goalkeeper Mackenzie Bross would not be called into action to make a save until midway through the second quarter, one of three saves she would make on the night.

Meanwhile, the River Hawks struggled to convert any offensive pressure into bona fide chances, unable to put any of their five total shots on goal to force a save from the Cardinals' goalkeeper. Catholic themselves would manage only one more shot than SU with six total, but put four on the cage, with Bross equal to three before the fourth proved to be the decisive action of the game.

Early in the fourth quarter, after Catholic forced the Susquehanna defense back into their own end and did well to cut off a clearance, a long pass from the right side found a Catholic attacker to just left of the face of goal. Bross rushed forward to cut off the angle, but a tap put the ball just past her legs to find Catholic's Mary Parker waiting near the right post to push the ball into the empty cage.

Now left with just over 13 minutes to find an answer, SU pushed hard to create some offense. They would tally three of their five shots in the quarter, but were also often stymied by penalty calls, with a green card shown to Sophia Prata and then a yellow to Ashley Schreffler just over a minute later, leaving the River Hawks shorthanded in their efforts to score. Susquehanna earned three penalty corner chances in the frame and nine total on the night, but were uncharacteristically unsuccessful from the set pieces, which have normally been a strength for SU's offense throughout the season.

Having now made their fourth consecutive appearance in the Landmark postseason and earning semifinal hosting rights for the first time since 2010, the trajectory continues to point upward for the Susquehanna field hockey program. They'll hope to make a return to the Championship in 2023 and compete to win their second Landmark crown, the first having come in 2018.

Facebook: susquehanna.riverhawks | Instagram: @gosusqu
Twitter: @GOsusqU | Hashtags: #AllIn, #GOSU, #RiverHawkPride

--RIVER HAWKS--