WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
>> Saint Francis tied the game in the final three minutes only to see Rider answer with the decisive tally with 82 seconds left to earn a 3-2 win in Northeast Conference (NEC) field hockey action on Friday.
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Madison Waldspurger, who had assisted on the first goal, scored the game-tying goal for the Red Flash.
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Dolores Zavaleta registered the tally on the squad's first score and a defensive save.Â
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Mia DiGenova made six saves in the first 40 minutes, and
Amber Bryan made one stop in the final 20 minutes.
TURNING POINTS OF THE MATCH
Waldspurger tied the game with 2:53 left in regulation to knot the score of 2, but Rider answered 91 seconds later to secure the victory. The Red Flash, who scored both its goals on penalty corners, had one last one with 66 seconds left, but couldn't get a shot off.
FLASH MOMENTS
Zavaleta tipped the ball into the cage for the first Saint Francis goal after the ball was inserted by Cruz Canepa and a shot started by Waldspurger at 39:56. Waldspurger then tied the game at 2 when she rattled the cage for the second time and tied the match off a Widdness insertion at 57:07.
FLASH NUGGETS
Waldspurger has posted a goal in each of her last three games and four times in the previous seven tilts. The junior is in a four-way tie for second place in the NEC in goals in league play with three markers. The four goals this season tie her season-best four scores in her freshman year, and she now has 11 goals and 11 assists for 33 points in her career. The 33 points are six away from the top 10 in program history.
Speaking of the top 10 in program history, Zavaleta is two assists and two points from cracking the top 10 in both categories for her career. The senior has four goals and five assists for 13 points in 2024. It is the second time Zavaleta hit the cage against the Broncs in her career after scoring the game-winning tally in a 3-2 win against Rider on September 30, 2022 in Loretto.
Widdness registered an assist for the second straight game and now has three goals and eight assists for 14 points in her collegiate career between Saint Francis and Converse College. Canepa has recorded a goal and three assists for five points this season.
The Red Flash were attempting to improve to 4-0 in NEC play for the second time in program history after the 2012 team won the first five NEC games. The squad opened NEC play 3-1 for the fourth time in program history (2007, 2011, and 2023) and the seventh time when adding the time in the Atlantic 10 (2014, 2017, 2018).Â
Saint Francis is 7-5 overall for the fifth time in program history (2016, 2017, 2018, 2023, 2024) for its third-best start in team history. The team has lost back-to-back games for the second time this season and the first time since the second and third games of 2024.
UP NEXT
The Red Flash starts a three-game road trip at Lock Haven on Sunday. Game time is noon.
