POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. – The No. 15 Vassar field hockey team used four unanswered goals in the first 16 minutes of play to pull away for the eventual 8-1 victory over Hartwick (5-3) on Wednesday. Rylie Pope (San Diego, CA) led the team with four points on two goals.

The Brewers (8-1) were persistent all day offensively, getting on the scoreboard at 5:11 of the opening half thanks to a goal from junior Cristina Lopez (Timonium, MD), who read an Alyssa More (Wilmington, DE) perfectly from four yards away from the Hawks' net for the opening score. Two minutes later, sophomore Dara Studnitzer (New City, NY) got on the board for the third time this season, knocking in a Hartwick goalkeeper deflection to make the score 2-0.

The team kept rolling when the Grace Yacura (Ashburn, VA) lined up for the penalty corner and launched the pass to Pope at the top of the circle. Pope one-timed the shot through the Hartwick defense for her first score.

Vassar outshot that Hawks 13-2 in the half and would score two more times in the first. More picked up a second assist after helping Grace Amell (West Hartford, CT) net her second goal of the season. Hartwick responded soon after when Rebecca Peakes lined up on a corner and found Brooke Singer on the circle. In another Brewers' corner, the squad would answer after Monica Feeley (Harrisburg, PA) took the Sophie McGrath (Yarmouth, ME) pass and redirected it to Gracie Tavakkol (Mountain Lakes, NJ) for the easy goal.

A Hartwick foul at 48:28 in the second lined Pope up for the penalty stroke. The junior capitalized by firing the shot into the left corner past the Hawks' goalkeeper. Feeley would get her turn in the action after Mikayla Young (Honesdale, PA) fed her off a penalty corner. By the end, the Brewers held a 22-1 penalty corner advantage. The final score came after the Hartwick goalkeeper deflected a Vassar pass into Sam
Plante (Watertown, MA), who returned the ball back in for the score.

Liz Rotolo (Lebanon, NJ) started in goal for Vassar, but Madison Maguire (North Kingstown, RI) found playing time in the second half.

Vassar plays their Senior Day game on Sat. Sept. 29 at 1 p.m. in their Liberty League home opener against Skidmore next.