Box Score Boxscore
PURCHASE, N.Y. – The Manhattanville Valiant field hockey team defeated Vassar on Saturday afternoon by the score of 4-1 at Weinberg Field in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., keeping the Valiants undefeated with a record of 3-0 this season and also earning the squad first place at the Brewers' Betty Richey Tournament.
Sophomore goalkeeper Amy Hilton (Pittsburgh, Pa./Kents Hill (Maine)) was named MVP of the 2011 Betty Richey Tournament with her two victories between the pipes over the weekend. Senior Alyssa Coughlan (Rye, N.Y./Rye), juniors Melissa Goncalves (Holtsville, N.Y./Sachem East) and Kayla Meenan (Warminster, Pa./William Tennent), as well as sophomore Chelsea Klein (Reading, Pa./Exeter) were also named to the All-Tournament team for their efforts in the two wins.
The game got off to a shaky start for the Valiants as the defense faltered and allowed Janet Kanzawa to regain her own rebound and put it behind Hilton to give Vassar the early 1-0 lead at the 7:25 point of the first half.
Sophomore Megan Greene (Jamestown, R.I./North Kingstown) tried to even the score by peppering opposing keeper Maggie Brelis with a pair of shots in a seven-second span, and then earned a penalty corner at the 10:12 mark. Off the corner Coughlan received the pass and took the long shot to tie the game with the assist going to Greene.
The two teams traded shots back and forth throughout the next 20 minutes as both keepers kept their teams in the game. The Valiant defense also made three defensive saves during that time frame, as senior Colleen Macedo (Norwalk, Conn./Brien McMahon), junior Sarah Mason (Glens Falls, N.Y./Glens Falls) and sophomore Meg Wittner (Niskayuna, N.Y./Niskayuna) each got credit for a save.
At the 29:41 point, Manhattanville scored what proved to be the game-winning goal as sophomore Britney Themistocles (Kingston, N.Y./Kingston) scored on a deflection to give the Valiants the 2-1 lead. Manhattanville tallied once more in the first half as Meenan tipped the ball in on a pass across the goal mouth from Coughlan.
The second half of the game proved to be a defensive battle between the two squads as neither side had any prime scoring chances until sophomore Alyssa Tourdot (Blue Bell, Pa./Wissahickon) notched her first goal of the season off of a pass from Goncalves to put the Valiants up 4-1. After that score neither team was able to get a shot off in the final 13:54 of the contest, allowing the Valiants to emerge victorious.
In addition to leading the goal margin, Manhattanville outshot its opponent by a 22-15 margin, including taking 18 of the 22 in the first half. Greene led the way for the Valiants taking six shots, five of which were on target. Coughlan, Tourdot and Meenan also recorded four shots apiece.
In goal, Hilton made a season high six saves en route to her third win of the season, while Brelis took the loss to fall to 2-2 on the season, making 12 saves and allowing the four Valiant markers along the way.
The Valiants will be back in action next weekend at the William Smith Classic in Geneva, N.Y. taking on the host Herons at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday. The Brewers will look to regroup on Friday when they travel to Dobbs Ferry, N.Y. to take on Mercy College.
