The Tripod

[Click to enlarge]

After a dominating performance against Neumann College, the Bantams lost in overtime to the Rowan University Profs. [Click to enlarge]

The Trinity College Lady Bantams field hockey team's historic season came to a close on Saturday, Nov. 15, when they fell to Rowan University in the second round of the NCAA tournament.

In the first round last Wednesday, Nov. 12, the team routed Neumann College, defeating them 7-0. They entered the NCAA Tournament ranked 12th nationally and were heavily favored to beat Neumann. Senior co-captain Karli Del Rossi led the effort with a hat trick, as the team dominated the game on both the offensive and defensive front. The Bantams outshot their opponents 52-2, and Neumann was unable to register an attempt on goal until 46 minutes into the contest.

They then moved on to face Rowan, who was ranked 11th in the national polls at the beginning of the tournament. Trinity staked out a quick 4-0 lead and entered the half with a three goal advantage. Yet soon afterwards, other factors came into effect. Torrential rain began shortly after the start of the second half, and Rowan scored quickly to cut the lead to two goals.

Rowan was able to register two more scores, forcing the game into overtime. Del Rossi and Caitlin Irvine '11 were both stopped on dramatic saves from Rowan's goalkeeper before Rowan forward Amanda Greene '09 notched the game-winner eight minutes into the extra period.

Naturally, the loss was both difficult and heartbreaking after a win seemed so in reach. "It was tough to end our season on Saturday. We saw everything in that game, from terrible weather with a delay of game in the second half to tough calls by refs that determined a lot," said senior co-captain Emily Skipp.

Despite the loss, the team was still able to appreciate the magnitude of what they had accomplished over the scope of the entire season. "I think that we all know how great of a season we have had and, unfortunately, it had to end on such a sad note. But we were lucky enough to get the bid in the first place, which allowed us to play teams that we have never played before, continue our season an extra two games, travel to new places, and experience something that only 32 out of 159 teams in the whole nation get to do," said Del Rossi.

This year was the first in ten seasons that the Trinity squad had qualified for either the final four of the NESCAC tournament or the NCAA Division III championships. "We wanted to be ranked and, with each week that passed by, we slowly climbed the rankings to be ranked as high as eighth in the nation. In my past three years here, we have never once been ranked nationally in the poll," said Del Rossi.

Their achievements may very well serve as a steppingstone for the field hockey program, as this year's successes could instill newfound confidence and expectations of excellence. "We have come far and have brought Trinity back into the national rankings, so we now need to be proud of ourselves and recognize what we have accomplished," said Skipp.

The team was able to develop cohesiveness and play a much more complete game than years past. "I think that our offense and defense worked really well together in that when we lacked in one, the other picked up the slack," said Del Rossi. "Although the forwards are the ones scoring, there were some games that we simply were having trouble putting the ball in the goal. If it wasn't for the defense, we would have never won the close games we did."

Next year, the team will lose five strong seniors, but they have a lot to look forward to with a strong freshman class and good depth. "I hope they pick up where we left off and continue to move this program forward," said Skipp. "We have re-made a name for Trinity with this season," concluded Del Rossi.

Article Tools