ASTON, Pa. – The Delaware Valley field hockey team battled Neumann to a 1-1 tie through the opening quarter before the Knights pulled away with two unanswered goals to hand the Aggies a 3-1 road loss Wednesday evening.
Neumann struck first, finding the back of the cage just over four minutes into the contest. DelVal responded by shifting possession into its offensive end, where
Darby Rusk put a shot on cage before the Aggies earned a penalty corner.
Ava Smadi connected with Lily Heincheck on the ensuing opportunity, with Heincheck converting to even the score at 1-1.
The Knights increased the pressure in the second quarter, firing seven shots before breaking through to regain the lead, 2-1. Neumann continued to challenge the DelVal defense through the remainder of the half, but goalkeeper
Gracyn Shutt recorded five saves to keep the Aggies within one heading into the break.
Neumann extended its advantage to 3-1 in the third quarter and held DelVal off the board for the remainder of the contest. Shutt added four saves in the second half to finish with nine, while
Lillian Plank contributed a defensive save for the Aggies.
DelVal returns to action Saturday, Sept. 19, traveling to Hood for a 2 p.m. matchup.
