Established 1826 — Oldest College Newspaper West of the Alleghenies

Red and White fall to Orange

Photo by Ben Mikesell
Photo by Ben Mikesell

By Sadie Martinez, For The Miami Student

After a 5-1 loss this weekend to No.5 Syracuse University, the Miami women's field hockey team hopes to regain their confidence before its next match.

Senior back Ali Froede said the team lacked confidence, as well as dedication to their game plan.

"Something that will help us is believing and trusting in our game plan," Froede said. "We were trying to do too much ourselves."

Miami freshman midfielder/forward Cooper Hudspeth scored her first goal for the RedHawks to avoid a shutout against Syracuse. Senior midfielder/forward Valentina Neira assisted on the goal.

"She was in the right place at the right time; it was a great goal," Froede said.

Prior to every game, Miami head coach Inako Puzo goes over a game plan that the team is expected to stick to.

Froede said this game plan might have worked, if the team would have stuck to it.

"Inako basically sets a game plan on what he believes will help us win before every game," Froede said. "We did it at short burst throughout the game and when we did it we performed really well. We really have to believe in it and if we stick with it we will win."

Senior Gabby Goldach said the team may have nerves to blame for their shaky first game.

"I think we got nervous because of the name of the jersey in front of us," Goldach said. "We didn't do anything to make them deserve five goals … Like our coach said, it was a test to see if our game plan worked but we didn't play with our game plan, so we still don't know if it works or doesn't work."

The RedHawks next match is their home opener against No. 14 Northwestern University.

Enjoy what you're reading?
Signup for our newsletter

"Our next game is definitely a short turn around," Froede said. "We need to keep focused and evaluate our roles on the team."

Goldach said the team has been preparing for the game since the bus ride home from Syracuse.

"Right now we are just physically and mentally recovering trying to figure out what we can do for the team. We need show up and move on from the loss and the scramble of a game we played this weekend," Goldach said.

Unlike the game against Syracuse, Miami has played Northwestern in the past.

"They're a high ranked team as well," Goldach said. "We played them in a past and it's always a good game."

Northwestern had its first game of the season this weekend against Boston University, which the Wildcats defeated 3-2 in double overtime.

"We have a girl on the team who has a sister who plays for Northwestern now so it's going to be a high competition game, and we are excited for sure," Goldach said.

Froede feels trust is a main aspect in winning this season.

"We need to do our jobs the best we can do it and not worry about what everyone else is doing," Froede said. "Something that is really important is trusting our teammates passing the ball."

The RedHawks face Northwestern 3 p.m. Tuesday in Oxford.