The Geneseo field hockey team hosted Nazareth College on Saturday Oct. 26 in its last home game of the season. The story from the day comes from the Knights’ defense, as it did not allow the Golden Flyers to take a shot. The defense “applied pressure and really dictated the flow of the game,” head coach Jess Seren said.
The Knights scored early on with a goal by senior Kayla DeAngelis and never looked back. DeAngelis finished the game with two goals along with sophomore Sarah Malinak, who tallied two of her own and was named SUNYAC Offensive Player of the Week for her efforts. With a 6-0 win, the Knights ended their final home game on a high note.
Even though this game was nonconference, the SUNYAC standings were finalized over the weekend. With a 5-1 conference record, Geneseo grabbed second place behind SUNY Cortland, the Knights’ only conference loss.
The Knights have a tough challenge ahead of them as they face SUNY New Paltz in the first round of the SUNYAC tournament on Nov. 8. The Knights beat the Hawks 2-1 in their match earlier this season.
“There is an entirely different mindset involved when it comes to playoffs with much more on the line,” Seren said. “New Paltz won the tournament last year and went to the NCAA tournament. They know what it takes and know how to win but we’ll be ready to go. I think it’s going to be a great match up against two strong teams.”
The past two seasons Geneseo has lost in the first round of the tournament to Cortland. If the Knights win the first game of the tournament they will advance to the championship, where a potential rematch against Cortland could take place.
Before the playoffs begin, Geneseo still has three more away games.
“Each of the three teams we face is a chance for us to better ourselves as a whole,” Seren said. “We want to keep the momentum going into playoffs, so it’s important we don’t overlook any of them and continue to take care of business.”
The Knights will take on the University of Rochester at 1 p.m. Saturday Nov. 2.
Editor’s note:
The field hockey team won 5-2 in a nonleague game against St. John Fisher College on Oct 30. Senior Kayla DeAngelis set the single-season point record with her goal on the day.