The 20th-ranked James Madison field hockey team opened on a 6-0 run against Appalachian State and rolled to a 7-1 victory on Friday afternoon at Adcock Field.
No. 20 JMU improved to 4-0 on the season while Appalachian State fell to 1-4 overall. This is the first time the Dukes have opened a season with four straight wins since 2002.
Three Dukes scored two goals each and three tallied assists on the day. They outshot the Mountaineers 21-6 overall, including a 14-3 advantage in shots on goal. They also dominated in corners opportunities, 9-1, during the game.
Redshirt-junior midfielder Taylor West (Princess Anne, Md./Pocomoke) led JMU with six points against App State, scoring one goal in each half and assisting on both of freshman forward Katie Winesett‘s (Centreville, Va./Westfield) tallies in the first half. Winesett’s two goals on Friday, scored over just five minutes of play, were the first two of her collegiate career.
Junior back Loes Stijntjes (Steenokkerzeel, Belgium/Heilig Hartcollege) also posted two goals on the day, both off corners from junior midfielder Adrienne le Vatte (Port Elizabeth, South Africa/Alexander Road) and senior back Dana Allaband(Elkton, Md./Rising Sun). Senior forward Bethany Ashworth (Lititz, Pa./Warwick) completed the team’s scoring output with a fast break tally with under eight minutes to play.
Senior goalkeeper Hannah George (Virginia Beach, Va./Kellam) earned the win after allowing no goals over the first 35 minutes of play. Freshman goalkeeper Sara Kraeutler (Oakhurst, N.J./Ocean Township) guarded the cage during the second half, saving two shots and allowing one goal over her 35 minutes of play. Cristina Ceppi took the loss after allowing seven goals over a full 70 minutes, making six saves.
Stijntjes posted the first score of the day for JMU, working with le Vatte and Allaband off a corner to fire in a shot during the 20th minute of play. The tally sparked a six-goal run by JMU that spanned 28 minutes and 46 seconds and bridged the halves. Her second goal of the day, the third for JMU, came off a similar play with le Vatte and Allaband.
West scored her first goal in the 28th minute of action as she dribbled to the left side and slapped a shot past Ceppi. With just less than 22 minutes left in the second half, she scored again when she was able to flick the ball over the goalie.
In the closing minutes before halftime, Winesett posted the first two tallies of her career, both off passes from West. Her first goal was scored in the 33rd minute by getting the ball into the lower corner while her second goal, scored with a minute remaining in the first half, came by deflecting West’s pass into the goal.
The Mountaineers’ lone goal came at the 51:47 mark after Jordyn Warren was able to win the ball off a scramble in front of the JMU cage.
No. 20 JMU returns to action on Sunday, Sept. 14 as the Dukes take on No. 13 Northwestern in a neutral-site match in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
Share
Chris Graham
