14th-ranked UAlbany field hockey celebrates Senior Day by crushing Colgate

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- Four members of UAlbany field hockey's senior class - which was honored ahead of Sunday's non-conference game with Colgate - recorded a goal in an 8-0 route of the Raiders, as the Great Danes improved to 14-3 on the season.

COACH PHIL SYKES: “Fantastic senior day! There were tons of positives - everybody played well and celebrated our seniors’ four years of hard work. I think these are the days you want on that special team. I am very pleased with the team’s effort and the chance to celebrate all of our seniors.”

KEY STATS

• Senior Floor de Ruiter led with two goals and two assists.
• Senior Blanca Orsola added two goals while senior Alison Smisdom notched one goal and one assist.
• Three additional scorers made it six different Great Danes with a goal - senior Isabella Del Vecchio, graduate student Charlotte Triggs, and sophomore Mara Küskes.
• As a team, UAlbany outshot Colgate, 23-6, with a 14-3 advantage in shots on goal.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Blanca Orsola opened the scoring with an unassisted goal in the ninth minute of action.
• Less than three minutes later, Alison Smisdom scored during a penalty corner. Collecting the insert, Smisdom passed to Floor de Ruiter who immediately sent the ball back to Smisdom. From there, she sent the ball past the goalie and into the net.
• Nearing the end of the second quarter, de Ruiter and Smisdom combined once more as de Ruiter tallied a goal. With 3:37 on the clock, the two seniors started what looked like the same play but instead of passing the ball back to Smisdom, de Ruiter went for the goal and scored.
• Two minutes into the second half, Isabella Del Vecchio made it a four-goal game. During yet another corner, de Ruiter took a shot from the top of the circle. Extending herself and her stick, Del Vecchio tipped the ball over the goalie for the score.
• UAlbany added four goals in the final quarter, including three in the last five minutes and two in the last two minutes of action.
• Charlotte Triggs started it off with a goal scored on a breakaway about four minutes into the quarter.
• Orsola added her second goal with a one-tap shot to get past the goalie after a pass from senior Lauren Willis.
• During what proved to be the final goal from a penalty corner, Mara Küskes collected a rebounded shot from graduate student Delphine Le Jeune to tally the Great Danes’ seventh goal.
• With just 21 seconds remaining, de Ruiter received a pass and dodged a few defenders in the circle to score her second goal of the day.
• Totaling eight goals with six different scorers, the Great Danes defeated Colgate, 8-0. 

NEXT: The Great Danes will host Vermont for the final regular season contest of 2024 on Friday (Nov. 1).