St. Joe’s advances in NCAA field hockey tournament with a win over Drexel
Hawks forward Carly Hynd played hero as she scored a pair of goals to secure a 2-0 win against Drexel. St. Joe’s will face No. 1 North Carolina on Friday.
St. Joseph’s forward Carly Hynd entered the opening round of the NCAA field hockey tournament, against Big 5 rival Drexel, having scored two goals all season.
She matched that total in 30 minutes of play Wednesday to propel St. Joe’s to a 2-0 victory in Chapel Hill, N.C.
Defense took control on both sides in the second half, with just six combined shot attempts. Hynd’s two first-half goals pushed the Hawks into the next round of the tournament, as they look to make a second straight run to the NCAA championship game.
“I saw a different group than I saw back in mid-October when we played Drexel,” said St. Joe’s coach Hannah Prince. ”I felt that we were a lot sharper with our ball movement. We were a lot more disciplined in our defense and sort of managing their key players. I also saw hungry girls in the circle. Obviously, Carly Hynd having two goals, but just really capitalizing on our opportunities.”
St. Joe’s (12-9, 4-2 Atlantic 10) and Drexel (13-8, 3-2 CAA) came into the tournament riding hot streaks after both won their respective conference tournaments. The Dragons controlled the flow for most of the first quarter, recording three shots while holding the Hawks offense without a scoring chance.
The Hawks established some rhythm early in the second quarter.
St Joe’s pressured Drexel’s net and Hynd corralled possession on the end line next to the goal. The forward chipped the ball past Drexel goalkeeper Halle Geiger to get St. Joe’s on the board first, two minutes into the second quarter.
The Dragons recorded their only shot attempt of the quarter 50 seconds later, but missed wide of the net, and St. Joe’s clamped down on Drexel for the rest of the quarter.
With four minutes remaining before halftime, Hynd struck again.
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Hawks forward Cat Arentz got free in front of the net and directed a shot that was saved by Geiger. The rebound deflected to Hynd, who was perfectly positioned to tap in an open goal for a 2-0 Hawks lead.
Drexel made a switch in goal to start the third quarter, plugging in Alana Poole to try to kick-start the team. Poole recorded two second-half saves and kept the Hawks off the scoreboard, but the Dragons offense was ineffective against the St. Joe’s back line.
“Defensively we just really focused on making tackles outside the circle,” Prince said. “It was really just fun to see the girls execute some of our pressing as well.”
The Dragons failed to get a shot in the third quarter and had just three in the final frame. Drexel pulled Poole with four minutes to play for an extra attacker, but the two shots it had in the final minute were stopped.
St Joe’s moves on to face No. 1 North Carolina (19-1, 7-1 ACC) on Friday at noon (ESPN+). The Hawks and Tar Heels faced off in the semifinal round of the tournament last season, and St. Joe’s took down UNC, 2-1.
“We’re in a place where we’re playing great hockey,” Prince said. “We’re connecting with each other on and off the field, really enjoying our time together, and that helps them play more connected, play more free and relaxed. I would say we’re in a great space and I think our hockey’s really been trending up.”