MORRISVILLE, N.Y. – Fresh off a loss in their season-opener, the Castleton field hockey team came out hungry in their second game of the year, riding a five-goal game from sophomore
Emily Harris to carry the Spartans to an 8-1 victory Friday night.
It was all Castleton from the first pass-back, as it took Harris and the Spartans just two minutes to open up the scoring. In what would be her first of many goals on the day, Harris dribbled her way into the circle off a Castleton corner before slotting the ball home. Her five goals in the game were the most by a Spartan since Rachel Preusser did so in 2013 — the same year she set the all-time Castleton record for points in a season with 79.
There was no let-up from the Spartans after their first goal, and just under four minutes later it was Harris who struck again. Taking the ball down the field herself, the sophomore air dribbled the ball into the circle and slapped it past the Mustangs' goalie to double Castleton's lead. Morrisville would steal one back halfway through the frame to cut the lead, but the Spartans controlled the quarter and the game, with the Mustangs getting four shots on goal in 60 minutes compared to 20 for Castleton.
It was more of the same in a second quarter that saw the Spartans extend their lead to four with some new and familiar faces finding the back of the cage. Two minutes into the period, Harris struck again to give herself a first-half hattrick, this time finishing off a nice pass from classmate
Payton Barlow. Soon thereafter, junior
Kaitlin Bardellini joined the festivities, scoring her first goal of the season to make it a three-goal lead before Harris would slot home her fourth of the half off a feed from Bardellini.
It appeared as though Castleton had cooled off a bit in the third quarter until Barlow stepped up for her first goal of the season with a minute to spare. In search of her second goal of the day, Bardellini ripped one toward the Mustangs' cage but had her shot blocked by Morrisville's keeper. Ready for the rebounds, however was Barlow, who found herself in the perfect position and did not miss the opportunity, making it a 6-1 lead for the Spartans heading into the final frame.
Morrisville sent numbers forward early and often in the fourth, forcing two of the three saves Castleton keeper
Hannah Frittenburg had to make in the game within the first minute. But after weathering the storm, the Spartans pushed themselves even further ahead.
On just their fifth corner of the day it was once again Barlow who, after a bit of a scramble, slotted the ball past Morrisville and into the back of the cage for her second of the night. The Spartans' eighth and final goal of the game came off a counter-attack led by none other than Harris for her fifth of the day.
It was a dominant display from start to finish for this Castleton team, spearheaded by the offensive fire power of Harris. The Spartans will look to carry this momentum over into their next game as they head back to Vermont to take on a top team in the country in Middlebury. The game is set for Tuesday Sept. 7 and starts at 6 P.M.
