Montclair State University field hockey team defeated Kean University 2-1 on senior night. With the victory over the Cougars, the Red Hawks clinched a spot in the 2024 New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) playoffs.
Senior midfielder Kylie Compton said that the day was very special.
“It was so surreal,” said Compton. “I felt like I was [just] a freshman seeing their senior day. So it’s weird to have my day and have my family and friends to support us. It’s really great.”
The Red Hawks clinched a spot in the 2024 NJAC Tournament.
Photo courtesy of Matt DeLuca Photo credit: Matt DeLuca
Coming into this game, the Cougars were on a six-game winning streak against Montclair State, dating back to 2019.
Compton said that the win over the conference foe was very important for the team.
“It was a good victory. We really wanted to accomplish this today,” said Compton. “As a senior, we haven’t beaten Kean in a couple of years. It’s something we really wanted to do, and we pulled it off today.”
Montclair State recorded chances for 12 seconds in the eighth minute, with freshman midfielder Emma Bianco and freshman forward Bella Heiser combining for back-to-back shots on goal. Kean only had one shot on goal out of their three.
Fifty-eight seconds into the second quarter, junior forward Kelly Westervelt attempted a shot, but the Cougars blocked it. Freshman forward Darby Von Berg’s shot was saved by Kean just under three minutes before the half.
Montclair State took the lead a minute later when freshman forward Joey Mayer charged up the far side of the field and slid a pass to Westervelt, who tapped in a shot that gave the Red Hawks the lead.
The Cougars were pushing hard offensively and managed to get two shots on goal, but Montclair State stood strong defensively.
The Red Hawks have won their tenth home game of the season.
Photo courtesy of Matt DeLuca Photo credit: Matt DeLuca
In the fourth quarter, sophomore midfielder Natalie Surma sent the ball in from the penalty area to Compton, then passed it to junior midfielder Sadie Eichlin on the far side, who then doubled Montclair State’s advantage with a ripped shot that flew through the defense and into the cage to make it 2-0.
“I’ve been struggling off the corner this season,” said Eichlin. “I just knew we had to have this goal, to give it a safety going into that last quarter. Just trying to put the ball in the net, as always.”
“I’m happy it came off a corner; it’s something we’ve been struggling with,” said Compton. “I don’t really care too much about the assist. As long as the ball ends up in the goal. But I think it’s great we have a lot of versatility on the team. A lot of forwards with goals, mids, and backs with points as well.”
The Cougars would get on back late in the fourth quarter by a penalty stroke goal but it wouldn’t cause the Red Hawks too much trouble, as they did not allow a shot by Kean for the rest of the game.
Montclair State improved their record to 12-4, are currently undefeated at 9-0, and are 4-1 in conference play. The Red Hawks are still on pace to beat their current record of 10-1 at home since 2016.
“We have to continue our discipline. We’ve had a great journey this season,” said O’Reilly. “We played some tough teams, and I think we’ve had some challenging losses. We’ve [beaten] some really good teams as well. We’ve put in the work, and obviously we’re happy with the win but not satisfied.”
Montclair State is yet to lose a game at home.
Photo courtesy of Matt DeLuca
Montclair State will continue their slate of home games and play against Union College on Wednesday, October 30.
“We have our out of conference game on Wednesday,” said Eichlin. “We’ll use that to help us get ready for Rowan. It’s probably our biggest NJAC game this year. So we’re looking forward to it.”
