Thursday, November 3
Stanford, Calif.
11:00 a.m. (PT)
Davidson College
4
vs
1
UC Davis (No. 3W )
Gray Robinson
Photo by: Tim Cowie - DavidsonPhotos.com
Davidson Strikes in Second Half to Advance in NorPac Field Hockey Tournament
11/3/2011 4:50:00 PM | Field Hockey
Box Score
NorPac Tournament Central
Buy Field Hockey Photos at DavidsonPhotos.com
STANFORD, Calif. – Senior Gray Robinson scored the first of the three second-half goals to lead Davidson past UC Davis, 4-1, in the first round of the NorPac Field Hockey Championship Thursday afternoon at Stanford University's Varsity Turf Field. As the second seed in the NorPac East Division, the Wildcats will play the the top seed in the West and sixth-ranked team in the nation, Stanford, in the semifinals Friday afternoon at 1:30 PT (4:30 ET).
Robinson scored in the 56th minute to break the 1-1 tie with the NorPac West Division third-seeded UC Davis Aggies (4-12, 2-4 NorPac). Sophomore Tyler McFayden and senior Christine Rua both added goals for Davidson (11-7, 4-2 NorPac) in just over five minutes to secure the win.
“We steadily built up our game throughout the 70 minutes,” said head coach Ginny Turner. “Sarah Fisher made some excellent saves and our defensive unit played well, especially in the second half.”
All four of Davidson's goals were unanswered as UC Davis scored the game's first goal in the 15th minute. Two-time NorPac East Player and Offensive Player of the Year Finley Amato demonstrated her offensive prowess with the game-tying goal for Davidson in the 19th minute and her Davidson single-season record tying eighth assist of the season on Rua's goal. With 14 goals on the year, Amato now has 36 points this season, which ties her for the second best season in Wildcats field hockey history with Lea Jaeger (2000) and Cathy Inabet (1980). Amato set the team single-season scoring record of 39 points last season.
Rua also finished the game with a goal and an assist as she was credited with the helper on McFayden's goal.
With just under 15 minutes remaining in the game Robinson collected a deflected crossing pass and ripped a shot into the back of the cage for the go-ahead goal. UC Davis took a timeout immediately after, but it did not slow that 'Cats as they padded their lead two minutes later. Rua found McFayden with a pass for theinsurance goal, and Rua then put the game out of reach in the 61st minute with Amato earning the assist.
In the first half, Emily Mecke tipped in UC Davis' goal with Nadia Namdari earning the assist. The lead was short lived as Amato tied the game less than four minutes later.
"We had a lot of opportunities to score in the first half that we let go over the end-line, but we really stepped up our intensity, played with heart and finished our plays in the second half to score three goals," said Turner. "UC Davis is fast and put us under some pressure with big balls."
Junior goalkeeper Sarah Fisher made five saves for Davidson, while her counterpart Conley Craven made four stops for UC Davis. Davidson outshot the Aggies, 15-11, while corners were even at 4-4.
"This was a great start to the tournament for us and it prepared us well for our game tomorrow vs. Stanford," said Turner.
Stanford (16-2, 6-0 NorPac) advanced to the semifinals with a 7-0 victory over Appalachian State, the fourth seed in the East Division. The Cardinal are looking for their fifth consecutive NorPac Championship and are undefeated home this season. Their lone losses were in New England to No. 4 Connecticut and No. 12 New Hampshire. Defender Becky Dru leads the team in scoring with 35 points (14g, 7a) and was named the NorPac West Division Co-Player and Defensive Player of the Year. Stanford is guided by Tara Danielson, the 2011 NorPac Coach of the Year. Turner earned the same honor in 2010.
Davidson defeated Stanford, 2-1, in the first meeting between the teams in 1999, but the Cardinal have prevailed in the last six meetings. The most recent meeting was in 2008, a 4-2 win for Stanford in the first round of the NorPac Championship. The 'Cats will be looking to earn their first trip to the NorPac Championship game.
"It's going to be a tough game, but if we play like we did today then it will be an excellent match!" said Turner.
Notes: Rua has a career-high 27 points this season on 10 goals and seven assists … Davidson has allowed the first goal in its last three games and rallied for the victory in each … the 'Cats have now won four of their last five games.
Tournament Schedule (All times PST)
Thursday, Nov. 3
Game 1: No. 2E Davidson defeats No. 3W UC Davis, 4-1
Game 2: No. 1W Stanford defeats No. 4E Appalachian State, 7-0
Game 3: No. 1E Longwood vs. No. 4W Pacific, 4:00 p.m.
Game 4: No. 2W California vs. No. 3E Radford, 6:30 p.m.
Friday, Nov. 4
Game 5: No. 3W UC Davis vs. No. 4E Appalachian State (consolation), 11:00 a.m.
Game 6: No. 2E Davidson vs. No. 1W Stanford (semifinals), 1:30 p.m.
Game 7: Game 3 winner vs. Game 4 winner (semifinals), 4:00 p.m.
Game 8: Game 3 loser vs. Game 4 loser (consolation), 6:30 p.m.
Saturday, Nov. 5
Game 9: Game 6 loser vs. Game 7 loser (Third Place), 11:00 a.m.
Game 10: Game 6 winner vs. Game 7 winner (Championship), 1:30 p.m.
NorPac Tournament Central
Buy Field Hockey Photos at DavidsonPhotos.com
STANFORD, Calif. – Senior Gray Robinson scored the first of the three second-half goals to lead Davidson past UC Davis, 4-1, in the first round of the NorPac Field Hockey Championship Thursday afternoon at Stanford University's Varsity Turf Field. As the second seed in the NorPac East Division, the Wildcats will play the the top seed in the West and sixth-ranked team in the nation, Stanford, in the semifinals Friday afternoon at 1:30 PT (4:30 ET).
Robinson scored in the 56th minute to break the 1-1 tie with the NorPac West Division third-seeded UC Davis Aggies (4-12, 2-4 NorPac). Sophomore Tyler McFayden and senior Christine Rua both added goals for Davidson (11-7, 4-2 NorPac) in just over five minutes to secure the win.
“We steadily built up our game throughout the 70 minutes,” said head coach Ginny Turner. “Sarah Fisher made some excellent saves and our defensive unit played well, especially in the second half.”
All four of Davidson's goals were unanswered as UC Davis scored the game's first goal in the 15th minute. Two-time NorPac East Player and Offensive Player of the Year Finley Amato demonstrated her offensive prowess with the game-tying goal for Davidson in the 19th minute and her Davidson single-season record tying eighth assist of the season on Rua's goal. With 14 goals on the year, Amato now has 36 points this season, which ties her for the second best season in Wildcats field hockey history with Lea Jaeger (2000) and Cathy Inabet (1980). Amato set the team single-season scoring record of 39 points last season.
Rua also finished the game with a goal and an assist as she was credited with the helper on McFayden's goal.
With just under 15 minutes remaining in the game Robinson collected a deflected crossing pass and ripped a shot into the back of the cage for the go-ahead goal. UC Davis took a timeout immediately after, but it did not slow that 'Cats as they padded their lead two minutes later. Rua found McFayden with a pass for theinsurance goal, and Rua then put the game out of reach in the 61st minute with Amato earning the assist.
In the first half, Emily Mecke tipped in UC Davis' goal with Nadia Namdari earning the assist. The lead was short lived as Amato tied the game less than four minutes later.
"We had a lot of opportunities to score in the first half that we let go over the end-line, but we really stepped up our intensity, played with heart and finished our plays in the second half to score three goals," said Turner. "UC Davis is fast and put us under some pressure with big balls."
Junior goalkeeper Sarah Fisher made five saves for Davidson, while her counterpart Conley Craven made four stops for UC Davis. Davidson outshot the Aggies, 15-11, while corners were even at 4-4.
"This was a great start to the tournament for us and it prepared us well for our game tomorrow vs. Stanford," said Turner.
Stanford (16-2, 6-0 NorPac) advanced to the semifinals with a 7-0 victory over Appalachian State, the fourth seed in the East Division. The Cardinal are looking for their fifth consecutive NorPac Championship and are undefeated home this season. Their lone losses were in New England to No. 4 Connecticut and No. 12 New Hampshire. Defender Becky Dru leads the team in scoring with 35 points (14g, 7a) and was named the NorPac West Division Co-Player and Defensive Player of the Year. Stanford is guided by Tara Danielson, the 2011 NorPac Coach of the Year. Turner earned the same honor in 2010.
Davidson defeated Stanford, 2-1, in the first meeting between the teams in 1999, but the Cardinal have prevailed in the last six meetings. The most recent meeting was in 2008, a 4-2 win for Stanford in the first round of the NorPac Championship. The 'Cats will be looking to earn their first trip to the NorPac Championship game.
"It's going to be a tough game, but if we play like we did today then it will be an excellent match!" said Turner.
Notes: Rua has a career-high 27 points this season on 10 goals and seven assists … Davidson has allowed the first goal in its last three games and rallied for the victory in each … the 'Cats have now won four of their last five games.
Tournament Schedule (All times PST)
Thursday, Nov. 3
Game 1: No. 2E Davidson defeats No. 3W UC Davis, 4-1
Game 2: No. 1W Stanford defeats No. 4E Appalachian State, 7-0
Game 3: No. 1E Longwood vs. No. 4W Pacific, 4:00 p.m.
Game 4: No. 2W California vs. No. 3E Radford, 6:30 p.m.
Friday, Nov. 4
Game 5: No. 3W UC Davis vs. No. 4E Appalachian State (consolation), 11:00 a.m.
Game 6: No. 2E Davidson vs. No. 1W Stanford (semifinals), 1:30 p.m.
Game 7: Game 3 winner vs. Game 4 winner (semifinals), 4:00 p.m.
Game 8: Game 3 loser vs. Game 4 loser (consolation), 6:30 p.m.
Saturday, Nov. 5
Game 9: Game 6 loser vs. Game 7 loser (Third Place), 11:00 a.m.
Game 10: Game 6 winner vs. Game 7 winner (Championship), 1:30 p.m.
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