Lawrenceville, NJ - The Wagner College field hockey team earned the program's first Northeast Conference (NEC) regular season crown after defeating Rider, 2-1, on Friday night.
Just a few weeks after being named having her interim tag lifted, Aubrey Mytych helped guide Wagner to its first NEC regular season championship in the program's seven year existence, and in the 21st season of NEC Field Hockey.
Coming into the game, both the Seahawks and Broncs both possessed conference records of 6-1, making this match the determinant of who would receive the NEC's regular season title.
After a scoreless first half that saw Rider take 13 shots to Wagner's one, sophomore Pilar Lorenzini scored her third goal of the year off of a rebound just two minutes into the third period.Â
For Lorenzini, she concludes the season with three goals and five assists.
Rider junior Valeria Perales responded six minutes later to tie the game at one apiece.Â
Later in the third, sophomore Floortje Leunisse found the back of the cage for the ninth time this year off of a loose ball reverse chip in front of the net. With less than two minutes remaining in the frame, the Seahawks held a 2-1 advantage.
For Leunisse, the Breda, Netherlands native finished the regular season with nine goals and seven assists.
As a team, the Green & White outshot Rider six to four in the third, while earning two penalty corners to Rider's one.
After a back-and-forth fourth quarter, the Seahawks held the Broncs scoreless to prevail, 2-1.
In net, freshman Saar van Dalen recorded her second 10-save performance of the season, bringing her total to 80 saves with a goals against average of 1.43 and an overall record of 11-6. Nine of van Dalen's saves occurred in the first half.Â
As a team, Wagner took nine shots, with seven on target, while taking four corners. On the other side, Rider took 17 shots, with 11 on target, while taking seven corners.Â
Lorenzini, Leunisse, graduate student Cami Valor, and sophomore Charlotte Müller all took shots on target during the contest. Defensively, sophomore Pilar Lorenzini, junior Claire Evans, and senior Rebecca Desiderio played a majority of the match as the backline for the Seahawks.
For Wagner, this run marks its first regular season title in its seven-year history.Â
The Seahawks conference mark of 7-1 is the best since the Green & White recorded an NEC record of 6-1 in 2022. Wagner's 11 wins ties the program's highest win total with the 2022 team.
Next up, the Seahawks will continue their season against the LIU Sharks in the semifinal round of the NEC Tournament. That game is scheduled for Thursday, November 7 at 11:00 am.Â
The winner of that game will face-off against the winner of Rider-Fairfield in the NEC Championship on Saturday, November 9.
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