Richmond rallies to beat field hockey

After scoring first, the Owls allowed four consecutive goals in the 4-1 loss.

Ending a five game winning streak, the field hockey team suffered a 4-1 loss against No. 17 Richmond in Virginia on Sunday.

“It was kind of a humbling game for us,” senior midfielder Katie Briglia said.

After scoring first, Temple was unable to overcome a strong second-half effort by the Spiders.

The Owls took their only lead of the afternoon in the 25th minute on a goal scored by junior forward Lauren Hunt off an assist by Briglia.

“We dominated the first half,” coach Amanda Janney said. “We were really able to counter [Richmond]’s attack and passing.”

But after halftime, it was a different story.

The Spiders scored all of their goals in the second half, beginning with sophomore midfielder Rebecca Barry.

Richmond scored the equalizer on a goal from Barry, then only 39 seconds later Barry scored her second unassisted goal to put the Spiders up 2-1.

This offensive explosion continued with junior midfielder Chelsea Davis scoring a goal 35 seconds after Barry’s second goal, putting the Spiders up 3-1.

The Atlantic 10 Conference match-up was a highly physical game, Briglia said, with the Owls earning two green cards in the first half, and Richmond receiving one. Both teams were given a yellow card early in the second half, and the Spiders would eventually earn another one.

“It was really physical, I mean it’s Richmond so it’s always a tough match,” Briglia said. “It was a physical game, but it’s expected in the A-10.”

With three minutes left in regulation, Temple pulled their goalie and put in sophomore midfielder Sydney Hibshman at kicking back.

Senior defender Natalie Gallo shut the door on the Owls with her first goal of the season sneaking past Hibshman in the last minute of the game.

For Briglia though, the team played better than the box score shows.

“We were up one goal the majority of the game, and I think just played to not let a goal in instead of continuing to try and score,” Briglia said. “We had a strong game and the score doesn’t really reflect that.”

Up next the Owls will be traveling to Amherst to face A-10 opponent Massachusetts. The Minutemen are ranked No. 19 in the nation, and are 4-1 in conference play.

Colin Tansits can be reached at colin.tansits@temple.edu or on Twitter @colin_tansits.

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