The William Smith College field hockey team defeated No. 2 seeded Ithaca in overtime to punch its ticket to the Liberty League championship game on Sunday, November 6. The Herons move to 15-4 on the season, while the Bombers fall to 14-4.
The game’s lone goal came off the stick of junior Libby Maxwell in the 62nd minute to secure the victory for the Herons. Maxwell now sits at four goals on the year, with three of them being game-winning-goals. Maxwell’s golden goal is the third overtime game-winner in her career.
William Smith will head to Rochester on Sunday, to take on the No. 1 seeded Yellowjackets in the Liberty League Championship match
MATCH MOMENTS:
- Through a scoreless first half, William Smith led Ithaca in shots 5-3, with a 3-0 advantage in penalty corners. Sophomore Katherine Jacobia recorded the only shot on goal of the half for the Herons.
- William Smith came out hot to start the second half, firing off five shots and landing three on goal in the scoreless third-quarter battle.
- The Herons earned three more penalty corners in the third quarter to bring their advantage to 6-2.
- At the end of regulation, the Herons had an 11-9 edge in shots, but neither team could break the scoreless draw, sending the semifinal match to overtime.
- Today’s match was the fifth time the Herons and Bombers have gone to overtime in their series history.
- Just 1:42 into overtime, Maxwell scored the game-winning goal off a pass from junior Sofia Pattillo. Pattillo beat two defenders on the end line and dished a pass across the net, where Maxwell was waiting on the back post to put it away for the Herons.
- Junior Kristen McCormick played all 62 minutes in the net for the Herons, recording five saves in the victory.
COACHES CORNER:
“I’m so proud of this team for our efforts tonight,” Head Coach Sophie Riskie ’07 said. “We felt very prepared both physically and mentally going into the game and knew it was going to be a battle. We played total team defense and Kristen had big saves in goal tonight. We remained poised going into overtime. It was very exciting when Libby finished the play a minute and 42 seconds into overtime. We are looking forward to the championship on Sunday!”
UP NEXT:
The Herons will be back in action on Sunday, November 6, when they take on No. 1 seeded Rochester, in the Liberty League Championship game.
Kyle leads sports coverage and hosts the Concrete Jungle podcast. Have a lead or question? Send it to [email protected].