Field Hockey Falls to No. 4 UConn in the BIG EAST Semifinals

Friday, November 4

Howarth Field

1:00 p.m.

Temple University

(7-12)

UConn (BIG EAST Semifinals)

(19-1)

UConn

Temple

Photo by: Tommy Meehan

Field Hockey Falls to No. 4 UConn in the BIG EAST Semifinals

11.4.16 | Field Hockey

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

PHILADELPHIA - The season ended for Temple field hockey in the semifinals of the BIG EAST Conference Tournament, as the fourth-seeded Owls (7-12) fell 8-1 to No. 4 and top-seeded UConn at Howarth Field on Friday afternoon.

Svea Boker completed a hat trick with three goals for the Huskies, who now advance to face the winner of the second semifinal between second-seeded Liberty and third-seeded Providence. UConn also got two goals apiece from Barbara van den Hoogen and Amanda Collins.

Temple senior Paige Gross scored her second goal in as many games to get the Owls on the board midway through the first half.

"We knew playing UConn was going to be difficult," said Temple head coach Marybeth Freeman. "We got scored on twice in the first five minutes and once in the last three minutes of the first half, otherwise that's a 1-1 game. We got back on our heels a little too much for no reason but our own. Yes, UConn is a very talented team, but I think we are as well and unfortunately we weren't able to put the pieces together today."

Temple found itself in an early hole in the first four minutes, as the Huskies scored a pair of goals at 3:38 and 4:06. Amelia Iacobucci scored the first with an assist from Casey Umstead on a penalty corner, and Charlotte Veitner came right back down on the Huskies' next possession to make it 2-0.

In the 12th minute, Boker was on the receiving end of a pass from Antonia Tiedtke on the right baseline, and found the corner of the cage to make it a 3-0 UConn advantage.

Temple showed fight despite the early UConn goals, earning its first penalty corner in the 18th minute and making it count. Gross tipped in the corner shot by fellow senior Katie Foran and found the top of the cage to put the Owls on the scoreboard.

The margin stayed two goals until the final minutes of the half when Collins put UConn ahead 4-1, scoring on a long pass from the top right by van den Hoogen.

Freshman goalkeeper Maddie Lilliock made five first-half saves for Temple. The Owls got a sixth on a defensive save from freshman Becky Gerhart who ranks second in NCAA Division I with nine.

Collins scored early in the second half, netting the first of four goals in the period for the Huskies. Two of those goals came on penalty corners as the Huskies earned three second-half corners compared to none for the Owls.

Boker scored the final two goals of the game in a five-minute stretch for the final tally of 8-1.

The conference tournament appearance for Temple was its 14th straight. The Owls' loss snaps a two-year streak of advancing to the BIG EAST Championship game.