Rochester, NY — The State University of New York at New Paltz field hockey team had a quick bounce-back victory Saturday after closing out a 4-3 road win over University of Rochester.
 
The Hawks (4-1 overall) took their first loss of the season Thursday at Skidmore College after getting blanked by the Thoroughbreds, 3-0. On short rest, they were back on the road against another tough opponent in the Yellowjackets and got out to an early 2-0 lead.
 
SUNY New Paltz controlled the first half and created more opportunities on its offensive half than Rochester, as they out-shot the Yellowjackets, 11-5 and held a 4-1 advantage in penalty corners within the first 30 minutes of action. However, just before the first half whistle sounded, Rochester cut the Hawks lead in half with a goal less than a minute remaining in the second quarter.
 
"Our focus this game was to play with urgency by supporting the players around us and working together," said SUNY New Paltz coach Shanna Szablinski. "Secondly, we wanted to play our game and not react to what Rochester was doing. The first half we controlled the tempo and made great decisions during transition, which led to a 2-1 start." 
The Yellowjackets tied the game at two just more than three minutes into the second half, but Natasia Plunkett had a quick response for the Hawks and scored two minutes later to grab her team back the 3-2 advantage. Shannon Bernhardt registered an assist on the play.
 
SUNY New Paltz maintained a goal advantage throughout most of the fourth quarter, but Rochester answered with six minutes remaining in the game, as Amanda Strenk knocked in her seventh of the year. However, the Hawks battled back and off an initial attempt by Plunkett, Morgan Woolley was there to knock in the rebound for her third goal of the season to put away the ultimate game-winner with two minutes left in the game.
 
"The second half posed more of a challenge as Rochester found holes in our press and begun to pour on the pressure," Szablinski said. "Defensively we got caught reaching and playing out of position. This cost us several big plays leading up to the final goal. Thankfully, we closed the deal when Natasia got the ball in the net."
 
SUNY New Paltz out-shot the Yellowjackets overall, 17-14, including shots on target (14-10), but Rochester had the edge in penalty corners, 8-7 with four coming in the fourth quarter, including one in the final seconds of the game that the Hawks defended well to preserve the lead.
 
"Key take-aways from the day were never give up, even when we have a lot of pressure in our defensive end," Szablinski said. "In the first half we worked smarter and in the second half we played more reactive to what Rochester was doing instead of being proactive. Defensively, we need to be more disciplined and aware of the clock, so we don't give up penalty corners in the last few seconds of the game."

Plunkett led the team with six shots, five of which were on goal, and finished the day with a goal and an assist. Woolley followed with four goals —three on target — and finished with a pair of goals in the one-score win. Julia Cummings added another score to her team-leading four on the year. Mackenzie Mortimer earned the start and made four saves, allowing one goal in nearly 25 minutes of action. Ryan Dowling came in relief and registered three saves and allowed two goals in 35 minutes.
 
SUNY New Paltz is back on the field Wednesday when it travels upstate to face RPI for a 4 p.m. mid-week game.
 
"Overall, we capitalized on our opportunities in our attacking end, and we were able to close out with four goals, so having that momentum and ability to score is something to be excited about," Szablinski added. "Now we need to continue to work on cleaning up our defensive circle."
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