LEWISBURG, Pa. -- Despite a valiant second-half comeback, Appalachian State University field hockey (5-13, 1-5 MAC) suffered a 3-2 defeat at Bucknell on Sunday.
The Mountaineers trailed 3-0 with less than five minutes remaining, but the Black and Gold responded with a pair of scores to cut Bucknell's lead to 3-2. Sophomore
Veerle Van Heertum cut the host's lead to 3-1 when she netted a solo goal with less than two minutes remaining. Less than a minute later, redshirt-freshman
Jillian Ulery registered her first goal of 2018, trimming Bucknell's lead to 3-2. Freshman
Ines Yofre notched her first career assist on Ulery's goal.
The Bison then withstood the Mountaineers' pressure in the final minute to record their 10th victory of the season.
App State outshot the Bison 10-5 in the second half. The Mountaineers also held a 5-1 advantage in penalty corners in the second half.
"Today was an exciting game against a really tough Bucknell team," head coach
Meghan Dawson said. "We fought all game as a team and were able to capitalize in the attack circle. We also had some earlier opportunities that we just couldn't get toward the cage."
Six Mountaineers fired a shot, including Van Heertum (three),
Meghan Smart (two),
Melissa Nobile (two),
Ali Williams (one),
Brenna Schoenbachler (one) and Ulery (one). Van Heertum and Smart tied for a team-high two shots on target apiece.
Sophomore
Annette Jarosz closed out another impressive performance with her sixth defensive save of the season. With her stop against the Bison, Jarosz moves into second place in Mountaineers' history with 11 defensive saves in her career.
Bucknell opened the scoring in the 17th minute, taking a 1-0 advantage into halftime. The Bison then netted a pair of second-half scores in a three-minute span, recording goals in the 56th and 59th minutes.
Kaelyn Long's solo goal in the 59th minute proved to be the game-winner. The Bison only registered five total shots in the second half.
App State begins postseason play at noon Wednesday against Central Michigan. All MAC tournament games will be played at Miami in Oxford, Ohio.
