Lady Jays edged out by #6 Penn, 15-14

Some late game heroics from Nittany Lion Mackenzie Cyr pushed sixth-ranked Penn State past the Blue Jays by a score of 15-14 on Sunday. In a back and forth nail-biter that kept the fans on the edge of their seats the whole way through, it was no surprise that the deciding goal came with just 31 seconds to go.

Penn State got the scoring going just 52 seconds into the game when Maggie McCormick connected on a high to low shot. The Lady Jays responded with a four-goal spree, led by junior Taylor D’Amore. D’Amore scored two goals just 67 seconds apart from each other to give the Jays an early lead.

Fourteen seconds after D’Amore’s second goal, senior Katie Duffey increased the Blue Jay’s lead to two, on a shot off of a feed from sophomore Jen Cook. Junior Sarah Taylor then gave Hopkins a 4-1 lead, scoring the first of her three goals on the day.

Despite the nice cushion provided by D’Amore and Taylor, the Nittany Lions erased the gap almost instantly. Three goals over a 98 second span allowed Penn State to tie the game at four.

With a little over 16 minutes remaining in the first half, Sarah Taylor was able to regain the lead for Hopkins, scoring off of a feed from D’Amore.

The assist gave D’Amore her 100th of her accomplished career. D’Amore became the fourth player in program history to reach this mark.

Penn State again answered with back-to-back goals from Kelly Lechner and Tatum Coffey to regain a 6-5 lead. Dene DiMartino was able to tie the game just before halftime off an assist from fellow freshman Caroline Turco.

Jen Cook kept the action going by scoring a go-ahead goal for the Lady Jays, just 21 seconds into the second half. As the scoring continued to go back and forth, D’Amore and Taylor were both able to notch goals, giving them each a hat trick on the day.

With the score eventually being tied at 11, freshman Jenna Reifler gave the Blue Jays another lead, off of an assist from D’Amore. A goal by junior Sammy Cermack, quickly followed by another goal from DiMartino, gave the Blue Jays a three-goal cushion, However they were unable to hold on to the advantage.

After Penn State’s Kelly Lechner tied the game up at 14, Taylor was called for an offensive foul, giving possession back to the Nittany Lions. On the following possession, Cyr scored what proved to be the game-winning goal, off of a pass from McCormick. Penn State was able to control the ensuing draw and run out the remaining time on the clock.

Despite the disappointing loss, D’Amore’s five assists made her the first player in school history to record five assists in three straight games. When asked about the game, D’Amore had a positive outlook despite the outcome.

“I felt like our offense was clicking throughout the entire game,” D’Amore said. “We were making a lot of good, quick passes, which resulted in some good chances on goal. This is something we have struggled with occasionally throughout the year.”

D’Amore also pointed to some keys to success heading into the playoffs.

“We need to improve our consistency heading into the post-season,”  D’Amore said. “We have to continue to play our best game for a full 60 minutes, so we don’t lose leads at the end of tough games.”

On Sunday, the Lady Jays will face another important conference opponent, when they travel to Columbus, Ohio to take on the Ohio State Buckeyes.

The Buckeyes are currently ranked 29th in the country, only three spots under Hopkins. Ohio is 8-7 this season, but boasts a 5-1 record at home.

The team plans on preparing for the Buckeyes just like any other game.

“Obviously, the Ohio State game is another important one, because its our last conference matchup,” D’Amore said. “But we aren’t going to do anything out of the ordinary against them. We are going to stick to the game plan that has been working for us all year, and play hard for a full sixty minutes.”

Following Sunday’s matchup at Ohio State, Hopkins will come home to host the ALC conference tournament at Homewood Field on May 2nd – May 5th.

The Lady Jays are now 9-6 on the season.