By Marty Joseph, QBSN Staff Writer
The Quinnipiac field hockey team defeated Lehigh, 3-2 in a non-conference matchup Wednesday at the Quinnipiac Field Hockey & Lacrosse Turf Complex.
The game consisted of strong efforts from both teams, highlighted by strong defense and solid goaltending.
Kim Cunniff (Walpole, Mass.) opened the scoring for the Bobcats in the 10th minute of play with a heavy shot on goal; converting a corner opportunity. Lehigh’s Caitlin Donnelly tied the game in the 21st minutes of play. Cunniff was then set up by Ashley Gradwell (Fogelsville, Penn.) and Megan McCreedy (White River, South Africa) off another corner opportunity with under 2 minutes to go in the half to send the Bobcats into halftime with a 2-1 lead.
Lehigh came out strong in the second half and needed key saves by goalkeeper Nicole Lewis (East Amherst, N.Y.) to maintain the lead. Lehigh finally tied the game at 2-2, when leading scorer Abbie Tilton put a backhand chip shot into the top right corner of the net as she was falling down to beat Lewis.
After Lehigh tied the game, the Bobcats defense shut down any more attempts by the Mountain Hawks, while turning up the pressure on offense. The Bobcats had several chances to take the lead in the late stages of the game, including a penalty stroke by Cunniff, which was turned aside by Lehigh goalkeeper Sierra Segear.
The Bobcats had 4 corners in the last 3 minutes of the game, waiting until the final one to convert. The Bobcats were awarded a corner opportunity as time expired and Cunniff was set up by McCreedy and Kaitlyn Notarianni (Clarks Summit, Penn.) to give the Bobcats a 3-2 victory.
Cunniff’s hat trick gives her the team lead with six goals on the season.
The Bobcats improved to 4-2 on the season with the victory. Quinnipiac returns to action this Sunday when it hosts Harvard at 2 p.m. at the Quinnipiac Field Hockey & Lacrosse Turf Complex in Hamden, Connecticut.
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