BRIDGEWATER, Va. - The Juniata field hockey team fell to the Bridgewater Eagles 2-1 in overtime on Saturday afternoon.
Goal-scoring chances were hard to come by in the first quarter, as the lone shot between the two teams came from Kalee Rothermel in the 12th minute.
Juniata started the second quarter with a penalty corner that was quickly followed by a Bridgewater counterattack that included two shots that forced one save from Brittney McMullen. Bridgewater earned a penalty corner in the 21st minute, but McMullen saved the shot from the corner. Juniata earned three penalty corners in the final five minutes but could only produce a shot wide from Aimee Buffington, and a blocked Rothermel shot. McMullen would make three more saves to send the game scoreless into halftime.
The first shot of the second half saw Juniata open the scoring column on a shot from Mirana Madara. Sydney Witter carried the ball from the right side towards the keeper and was able to pass the ball to the centrally-located Madara, who had an open cage.
Bridgewater swiftly answered back by overloading the Juniata defense in front of the box for a goal in the 37th minute. Bridgewater would control play following the goal with four shots and two penalty corners in the next five minutes. Juniata would apply pressure in the final minutes with a shot on goal from Rothermel and two penalty corners.
The fourth quarter saw momentum consistently shifting between the two sides, with Juniata opening play with a Madara shot in the 48th minute that forced a Bridgewater save. Bridgewater would retake possession and force a save from McMullen in the 48th minute. The next five minutes saw no shots, but each team tallied three penalty corners they could not capitalize on. Juniata's defense blocked a shot in the 54th minute, and McMullen made a save in the 58th minute, but the offense was unable to convert two more penalty corners in the final minutes to send the 1-1 game into overtime.
Bridgewater started overtime with possession, and it would take them 25 seconds to find the goal to take the win. An attack from McMullen's right forced her away from her net, and a loose ball found a Bridgewater attacker who was able to put a shot on before McMullen could return to position.
McMullen tallied eight saves in the game and sported a .800 save percentage.
Juniata tallied six shots to Bridgewater's 17 while earning 12 penalty corners to Bridgewater's eight. Rothermel led Juniata with three shots in the game, while Madara put the most shots on target with two.
The Eagles will look to bounce back on Tuesday, September 20, as they travel to Reading to play Alvernia under the lights. Juniata enters the matchup with an 8-8-1 record, with their last win against the Wolves coming in a 1-0 home victory in 2018.
