In their final game of the 2023 season, the Ramapo field hockey team fell to New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) opponent Rowan University, 6-0 on Saturday night.
In the game, the Roadrunners were outshot by a total of 46-2, including 36-1 in shots on goal. Junior goalkeeper Michelle Kukan played the first three quarters, recording 19 saves while allowing four goals. Sophomore Erika Roura was in net for the final quarter, recording nine saves and allowing two goals.
In goal for Rowan was Mariah Juiliano, who only had to record one save en route to a shutout. As for how Rowan amassed their six goals, Julia Cavicchio and Sidney Pavlishin each scored twice, and Sarita Marshall and Tess Herman each recorded one goal. Although she didn’t score, Vanessa DiDonato recorded a game high 13 shots and 11 shots on goal. The only two shot attempts from the Roadrunners came off the stick of junior Morgan Trotter.
Ramapo now finishes their first year under interim head coach Kelsie Murphy with a 3-13 record, including going 0-5 against NJAC opponents. This comes after two consecutive seasons making the NJAC playoffs, although a majority of the players on those teams graduated prior to this season.
Sophomore Victoria Chavez led the Roadrunners in goals scored with four, while Trotter recorded the most total points on the team with nine. This is a change of pace from the past two seasons when the Roadrunners saw the now-graduated Victoria Docherty record a team-record 62-point season.
As for Kukan, she recorded 151 total saves, and allowed an average of 2.63 goals per game. Her 151 saves were more than the totals she had in her freshman and sophomore years combined.
The Roadrunners have work to do when returning in 2024. The team will have to find some sort of offensive identity as well as find a full-time answer at the head coach position.
wjackso2@ramapo.edu
Featured photo courtesy of Ramapo Athletics
