DOYLESTOWN, Pa. – The Delaware Valley field hockey team broke through twice in the second half while its defense kept Immaculata off the board, securing a 2-0 shutout victory over the Mighty Macs on Wednesday afternoon.
The opening half featured limited offensive opportunities as the two sides battled through a scoreless first 30 minutes. Immaculata recorded the lone shot of the first quarter, sending an attempt wide in the closing minute of the frame. DelVal generated more pressure in the second, with
Caylen Taylor putting the Aggies' first shot on goal in the 22nd minute before earning a penalty corner less than two minutes later. Neither side was able to break through before the halftime whistle, sending the game into the break scoreless.
The Aggies broke the stalemate in the third quarter off a penalty corner inserted by Taylor.
Ava Smadi received the insert at the top of the circle and fired a hard shot toward the cage, where
Lily Henicheck redirected the attempt past the goalkeeper to give DelVal the 1-0 advantage.
The Mighty Macs increased the pressure in the final minute of the frame, repeatedly working the ball toward the circle from the right side.
Lillian Plank,
Jillian Collins and Henicheck stood strong defensively, shutting down the attack before it could penetrate the circle to preserve the one-goal advantage heading into the fourth.
DelVal doubled its advantage in the fourth with a well-executed penalty corner and crisp passing around the circle. Taylor started the sequence with the insert up top to
Savannah Weaver, who quickly moved the ball left to
Kylie Conley. Conley kept the play moving with a return feed to Taylor, who finished the sequence by driving a shot into the corner of the cage to extend the Aggies' lead to 2-0.
Shaelynn Castanaga-Acerra took over in the cage to close out the final frame, recording one save to help preserve the shutout. Immaculata continued to search for an answer late, earning a pair of penalty corners, but the Aggies' defense refused to give way. DelVal denied the Mighty Macs a clean look on the first opportunity before Collins shut down the second attempt, sealing the 2-0 victory.
DelVal is back in action this Saturday, Sep. 26 facing Ramapo College on the road at noon.
