Bulldogs fall, 1-0, to Broncs Friday night

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – In the quest for a place in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Tournament, the Bryant University field hockey team fell to Rider, 1-0, on Friday night in Smithfield.

The window of opportunity for the Bulldogs (3-15, 1-4) to play in the conference tournament has just about closed with Fairfield's win over Sacred Heart and the Broncs (11-6, 3-2) victory last night.  

The Bulldogs matched the visitors in nearly every stat and held the Broncs scoreless for 44 minutes, until Shannon Hughes found the back of the cage, finishing low and to the left. Christine van Egmond sent a pass to Kesheal Henderson at the top of the circle, who gathered the ball before finding Hughes on the right side, who shot and scored.

The Black and Gold put on the press offensively, with freshman Emily Perryman (Lebanon, N.H.) finding her way through traffic before pulling the shot just right of the target. With less than 30 seconds left in regulation, junior Victoria Danby (Lancaster, Mass.) received a long pass up the field and took a Rider defender one-on-one, but was unable to come up with the equalizer for the Bulldogs.

Perryman led the team with three shots, adding to the Bulldogs' six-shot total. The Broncs finished with nine shots, placing three on frame.

Freshman Marissa Elizardo (New Wales, Pa.) logged two saves on the night, adding to her total of 87 on the year.

The Bulldogs return to action for senior day on Sunday, Nov. 1 at 1 p.m., when they take on Monmouth in their last regular-season match.