POUGHKEEPSIE, NY (October 3, 2015) – The Vassar College field hockey team turned in its best performance of the season Saturday, handing No. 5 William Smith College its first loss of the 2015 campaign in a 3-1 Brewer victory in Liberty League play from Weinberg Field.

The win for the Brewers (9-2, 2-0 Liberty League) was their second straight win over the Herons, after dropping the first 14 in the all-time series. Vassar has now won 15 straight home games on Weinberg Field, the second-longest streak in NCAA Division III field hockey. Also, the win over the No. 5 team in the National Field Hockey Coaches Association was the highest ranked team VC has beaten on record. 

Saturday was a full team effort for VC, as the Brewer squad held the potent William Smith (9-1, 1-1 Liberty League) attack to just one goal. The Herons had come into the contest averaging five goals a game, which tied for the best mark in the country.

The Herons came out of the gate fast, as Vassar College freshman keeper Paige Amico (Carlsbad, CA/La Costa Canyon) was forced to make two stops in the first seven minutes of the game. From that point though, Vassar pinned the Herons in their own end over the next 13 minutes of the period, registering four shots and four penalty corners.

The fourth corner paid dividends for VC, as Emma Bracken (Alexandria, VA/T.C. Williams) fired a shot that was saved by WSC net minder Biz Chirco. Junior Hayley Beach (Latham, NY/Shaker) followed with another shot that was saved, but Bianca Zarrella (Leominster, MA/Leominster) sent a loose ball across to Lauren Shumate (Encinitas, CA/San Dieguito Academy) who tipped the ball home for the early VC lead.

Both teams had good scoring chances after the goal, but both Chirco and Amico were up to the task to send the game into halftime with Vassar up a goal. After the intermission, VC wasted no time doubling its lead, as freshman Megan Caveny (Cicero, NY/Cicero-North Syracuse) potted a pass from Beach to put VC up 2-0.

On the goal, sophomore Storm Sideleau (Contoocook, NH/Kimball Union Academy) stole a clearing pass by William Smith and fed the ball into the circle for Beach. The junior spun and found a wide-open Caveny five yards in front of cage, and she pushed the shot into the right corner for her sixth goal of the year.

The Brewers kept the pressure on, and in the 52^nd minute tacked on another score. Bracken was denied on a defensive save by Emily Granger, but Shumate kept the ball in the zone for VC. Senior Lauren Wiebe (Chicago, IL/Francis W. Parker) attacked the end line and sent a ball to Sideleau, who one-timed the cross into the side of the cage to make the score 3-0.

After a Heron timeout, the visitors came out strong for the remainder of the contest, and nearly got on the board at the 59:20 mark of the game, but sophomore Ashley LaMere (Ballston Spa, NY/Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake) saved a shot off the line. William Smith got on the board in the 64^th minute, as Alexandra Frary powered home an insert on a penalty corner for her fifth goal of the year.

The Herons played the final five minutes without a keeper, but couldn't add another as the Brewers knocked William Smith from the likes of the unbeaten. Vassar now sits alone in first place in the Liberty League with a 2-0 conference mark.

Vassar held a slight shot advantage at 14-12, though the visiting Herons finished with a 9-5 edge in the penalty corner column. Amico made five stops in net while playing the full 70 minutes, and Chirco also finished with five saves for William Smith. The defensive unit of LaMere, junior Sophie Arnold (Merion, PA/Lower Marion), freshmen Haley Cubell (Lititz, PA/Manheim Township) and Molly Youse (New Cumberland, PA/Cedar Cliff) was stellar in front of Amico all game. 

The Brewers will have eight days off before heading to the University of Rochester October 12 at 6 p.m. in Rochester, NY.