The field hockey team dropped its first game of the season 4-3 in overtime to No. 8 Virginia.
After an early goal in the first half by junior forward Lauren Hunt, the Owls’ offense went missing for much of the game.
Virginia came out strong in the second half, scoring three goals in the first 20 minutes.
Junior midfielder Elly Buckley scored the Cavaliers’ first two goals, and sophomore forward Rachel Sumfest added a third goal to put the score at 3-1.
But Temple stormed back late in the second half, scoring two goals in the final five minutes.
“We really set the bar high today,” coach Amanda Janney said. “We were able to come back and score two goals in the final two minutes against a Top 10 team, so I was pretty happy with that today.”
Senior forward Katie Briglia scored on a penalty corner, and sophomore forward Amber Youtz made a diving shot to score the unassisted equalizer.
“Everyone pushed together as one unit in the second half, and that’s what really helped out,” Youtz said. “Our passing was strong, and we just showed the heart in the second half that this is what we came out to do.”
With the game carrying into overtime, Virginia eventually outlasted the Owls as Sumfest scored the game winning shot making the final score 4-3.
Janney said that some of Temple’s weaknesses were shown in the game today.
“We are a younger team, so we’re still figuring out positions and putting new people in new spots,” Janney said. “We’re still figuring out our system, and I think our youth was exposed a little bit.”
The Owls had three more penalty corners than Virginia, but were outshot 15-9.
Brigilia said that keeping a high level of play was something the team needs to work on.
“We need to work on maintaining a high level of play,” Briglia said. “In the past we’ve had problems with lulls, having some really good minutes and then having a bad five minutes that just kills us.”
Up next for Temple is No. 5 Duke. They will host the Blue Devils in the second game of the Temple Invitational on Sunday.
The Owls will be looking for their first win of the year, and Janney said she is hoping for another hard fought game from her team.
“We really want to see the same level of intensity, if we do that I think we can do a good job against Duke,” Janney said.
Colin Tansits can be reached at colin.tansits@temple.edu.
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