Late Goal by No. 5 Virginia Sinks JMU, 3-2

Tuesday, October 24

Harrisonburg, Va.

5 p.m.

James Madison University

(3-12)

Virginia

(11-5)

Virginia

James Madison

10/24/2023 8:45:00 PM | Field Hockey

Box Score Photo Gallery

HARRISONBURG, Va. – Virginia's Dani Mendez-Trendler found the back of the net with under five minutes remaining to give the No. 5 Cavaliers a 3-2 victory over James Madison on Tuesday night at the JMU Field Hockey Complex.

JMU slips to 3-12 with two more games remaining in the regular season. UVA awaits the ACC Championships, coming into the tournament with an 11-5 overall record with a 3-3 mark in conference play.

Graduate student Morgan Merritt and freshman Maddy Shale both scored in the loss. Assisting in the goals were classmate Azul Covarrubias and sophomore Skyler Brown.

Virginia's Taryn Tkachuk finished with an assist and a goal for three points to lead the team. Laura Janssen and Dani Mendez-Trendler both netted one as well, while Emily Field chipped in with an assist.

In net, senior Brandelynn Heinbaugh got the start, making four stops and allowing just one goal in 30 minutes of action. Junior Katie Fricke stepped in for the second half, tallying three saves and two goals allowed. For the Cavaliers, Tyler Kennedy let in a pair of goals and made one save.

How It Happened

Halfway through the opening frame, Covarrubias connected with Merritt who cashed in on a penalty corner with an outside shot.
Virginia responded nearly 15 minutes later, Tkachuk scored during a scramble in front of the net to make it 1-1. The score would hold into the halftime intermission.
At the 12:50 mark of the third quarter, Tkachuk crossed to Laura Janssen to give the Cavaliers a 2-1 lead.
In the opening minute of the fourth, Brown dished to Shale, who used a reverse shot to tie the game at 2-2.
The Cavaliers were awarded a penalty at the 54:58 mark, however, Fricke forced Tkachuk to shoot wide to keep the game knotted.
Moments later, Field threaded a pass near the goal line to Mendez-Trendler who swatted it in to give UVA the 3-2 win.

Game Notes

Virginia leads the all-time series against James Madison, 36-12-2.
The Cavaliers held the advantage in shots (20-4), shots on goal (10-3) and penalty corners (10-3).
The Dukes have not drawn more than three corners in each of their last three games. Additionally, JMU has not taken more than five shots in each of those contests.
With Merritt's and Shale's goals, nine Dukes now have multiple goals this season.
Eight of JMU's 12 losses have been decided by one goal.

Quoting Head Coach Christy Morgan
"This was a true indication of what's possible for JMU field hockey. We played a great game -- we played with skill, connection, grit and fire in our bellies. We are a team that should be diving, giving extra effort, and connecting. The connection from Skyler to Maddie for the reverse shot - beautiful goal - it was just brilliant hockey, and it was team hockey. This was a good stepping stone for the future. We're only losing three or four players so we have a good base. Now, these guys know what's possible and they need to show up to play connected hockey because we can compete with anyone."

Up Next
The Dukes will continue their four-game homestand as they host Georgetown on Sunday, Oct. 29. The contest against the Hoyas is scheduled for noon and will stream on ESPN+.