Field hockey ends on best finish since ‘05
Seven field hockey seniors finished their careers with a heartbreaking loss in the Mid-American Conference championship game Saturday.
Alexis Gersbach, Simone Lazar, Julianna Makrinos, Bailey McKeon, Ellen Riley, Abby Roth and Skylar VanNatta all had their careers come to an end in the 2-0 loss to Miami (Ohio) including All-MAC First Team players, VanNatta and Lazar, the backbones of the team.
They ended their final season with the best finish the Chippewas have seen since winning the title in 2005.
“The senior class propelled us to the championship,” head field hockey coach Cristy Freese said. “They have come a long way since they were freshman.”
The team was 6-14 in the senior's freshmen year, but the newcomers saw plenty of playing time. The program progressed in the coming seasons and came within one game of winning the MAC regular season title.
The senior class never beat Kent State, which ended the Chippewas season time and time again – until this weekend.
The greatest accomplishment this year for the seniors was beating Kent State in the semifinals. CMU had not beaten the Golden Flashes during the seniors' entire career, which totaled nine Kent State losses in a row for the seniors until their final showdown.
“I’m so happy for my kids and especially very happy for the seniors,” Freese said.
The Chippewas mounted a second half comeback after getting down early 1-0. The final goal of the day was scored by McKeon.
“We lost to Kent after being up 3-1 before,” McKeon said. “After my goal we all kept our sticks down and just played really hard.”
Next season, CMU will be competing for the title once more with some new faces and some returning stars, including points and goals leader Jordyn Brengosz, assists leader Kaysie Gregory, All-MAC Second Team goalkeeper Sadie Reynolds and All-MAC Second Team Anne Middeldorp.
