BOX SCORE Loretto, Pa. - The Saint Francis field hockey team (1-1) suffered a narrow defeat to Sacred Heart (1-1) as the Pioneers held on to record a 3-2 victory at DeGol Field.
 
Ceretta's Reaction
 
"We kept fighting but this isn't the outcome we were hoping for," said head coach Betta Ceretta. "We allowed Sacred Heart to play at its desired pace and didn't play our game. We will continue to work as a team to get ready for our next game."
 
Turning Point
 
The Red Flash missed out on converting a golden opportunity with 5:17 left in the contest when Sacred Heart goalkeeper Emily Degennaro blocked junior Hannah Retherford (Benton, Pa./Benton)'s penalty shot. It was the final scoring opportunity of the game for the Red Flash.
 
Highlights

• Two of the three Pioneer goals came right out of the gate in both halves. In the first half, Bridget LaRiccia scored just under the four-minute mark. Allie Brouhard broke the 1-1 deadlock early in the second half.
• Saint Francis evened the score at 1-1 with a rebound goal by junior Marielle Cavallaro (Matamoras, Pa./Delaware Valley). Fellow junior Brea Seabrook (Wilkes Barre, Pa./GAR Memorial) helped with an assist.
• The first half saw no further scoring as both goalkeepers had impressive performances.
• In the 52^nd minute, Red Flash junior Brianna Govia (St. James, Trinidad/Holy Name) tied the game at 2-2 with an unassisted goal.
• At the 61^st minute, Saint Francis freshman Taylor Massage (Hummelstown, Pa./Hershey) was called for a green card creating a man-advantage for the Pioneers. Less than 30 seconds later, Sacred Heart's Nichole Tolli took advantage of the numbers to score the eventual game-winning goal.
• Thirty seconds after the go-ahead goal, Red Flash junior Brea Seabrook (Wilkes Barre, Pa./GAR Memorial) was whistled for a yellow card leaving Saint Francis, for a short period of play, two players fewer than Sacred Heart.
• Emily Degennaro made the save of the game when she denied Red Flash junior Hannah Retherford (Benton, Pa./Benton)'s shot to her blocking side. Saint Francis never got another good look at the goal. 

Notes

• The Red Flash had 16 shots in the first half and 18 overall. The Pioneers totaled 11.
• Saint Francis totalled eight penalty corners in the game, all of which came in the first half. Sacred Heart finished with six by evenly distributing them between halves.
• Junior Brea Seabrook (Wilkes Barre, Pa./GAR Memorial) had nine shots to lead the Red Flash. Nichole Tolli led the Pioneers with three.
• Red Flash junior goalkeeper Elizabeth Dyer (Berwick, Pa./Berwick) played all 70 minutes.
• There were no cards given in the first half but the second half saw two green cards and one yellow card awarded.

 
Up Next
 
The Red Flash are back in action on Friday, Sept. 1, at 3 p.m. when it hosts the Golden Flashes of Kent State.