SU field hockey extends win streak to eight games

Field hockey wins eighth in a row

The Orange allows Colgate only two shots on net en route to a 3-0 win.
Published: October 10, 2021
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Syracuse field hockey players celebrate one of their three goals against Colgate on Sunday.

The seventh-ranked Orange field hockey team recorded its seventh shutout as they defeated Colgate on Sunday, 3-0, at J.S. Coyne Stadium.

“I think we have a really strong defense,” sophomore back Eefke van den Nieuwenhof said. “We work together as a team to defend, and it’s working really well.”

The Orange improved 10-2 with their eighth win in a row. The Raiders fell 0-10, but they competed hard to keep Syracuse from completely running away with the game.

“I think Colgate did a good job,” Orange head coach Ange Bradley said. “They had nothing to lose, so they came out here and they gave it their best effort.”

After a scoreless first quarter, Claire Cooke tallied a goal in the second off an SJ Quigley assist to get Syracuse on the board. The Orange maintained their 1-0 lead through the rest of the first half.

Laura Graziosi scored on a penalty stroke in the third quarter to extend the lead to 2-0. In the fourth, Clara Morrison notched an unassisted goal to complete the scoring. The Orange did appear to have a fourth goal later in the period, but it was overturned on review, keeping the final count at 3-0.

The Orange placed pressure on the Raiders throughout the contest, with 33 shots on net and 15 penalty corners. However, Colgate’s defense held up well in limiting the Orange to three goals.

“I thought their goalie did a fantastic job. She was hot, and we were not,” Bradley said. “We know this is an area that we have to get better at, and at some point it’s going to turn.”

The match was a part of celebrating Syracuse University’s 50 years of women’s athletics. The field hockey team began the kickoff weekend on Friday with a 2-1 victory against No. 15 Wake Forest. Alumni were in attendance for both games.

“It’s such an honor to play as a woman on this team,” van den Nieuwenhof said. “You see here today, all the women that came before us; it’s a beautiful thing that we can play too on this high level.”

At halftime, a tribute was made to former Orange field hockey captain Christy Gaitten who passed away in May. Gaitten played for the Orange from 1986-89 and earned two NFHCA All-Region honors during her collegiate career. She stayed in close contact with the SU field hockey program over the years and coached at the club level until her passing.

“I think that it was powerful to be able to see our past connect with our present, to know what Christy’s legacy was here, and the type of player she was,” Bradley said. “What she embodied are things that we work hard to be able to put in our culture; the toughness, the grit, the fight.”

Her family, friends and former teammates were in attendance to honor her memory. A No. 22 jersey was given to Gaitten’s family in remembrance of the number she wore.

The Orange will resume ACC play on Saturday, as they travel to Durham, N.C., to face Duke.

“Duke is going to be incredibly challenging; it’s their senior day and I think they’re playing some really good hockey right now despite what their record is,” Bradley said. “We have to refocus and get ourselves ready for that road trip.”

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Charlotte de Vries (10) springs toward a loose ball against the Colgate on Sunday.