The No. 20 AU field hockey team rallied behind senior captain attacker Irene Schickhardt to defeat Patriot League rival College of the Holy Cross 4-0 during the annual "Phil Jacobs blue out" on Saturday before beating La Salle, 3-0 on Sunday.
Schickhardt led an offensive surge against the Crusaders with seven points, including three goals and an assist. She also contributed two goals in the Eagles' game against La Salle.
The Eagles' difficult schedule (five of the Eagles' first eight opponents were ranked in the top 25) had taken its toll and after three straight losses, the Eagles used this weekend as a turning point in their season.
Schickhardt began the Eagles' resurgence 40 seconds into the first game when she scored an unassisted goal off a rebound.
The Eagles' attack continued six minutes later when Schickhardt found sophomore forward Christine Fingerhuth for the second goal of the game. The Eagles did not stop the pressure, as they took 14 shots on goal in the first half alone and 22 shots total on the game.
Holy Cross senior goaltender Erin Singleton had eight saves, as she fought to keep the Eagles' offense at bay. But each time the ball cleared the Holy Cross crease, an Eagles attacker was there to move it back towards the goal.
Schickhardt scored her second goal of the game off a penalty corner with two minutes left in the first half. Her third goal came in the 54th minute off an assist from sophomore midfielder Anne van Erp.
In an almost identical fashion, the Eagles offense dominated the turf against La Salle University.
In past games this season, the Eagles have struggled to capitalize on their penalty corners. But in Sunday's match-up, the Eagles scored all three goals off penalty corners.
Once again, Schickhardt ignited the Eagles' offensive fire with a goal in the 21st minute of the game. Schickhardt tallied again in the second half for her team-leading seventh goal of the season. Senior midfielder Jesika Pufnock also scored for the Eagles in the 47th minute of the game.
The Eagles out-shot La Salle 23-2 and had 14 penalty corners to La Salle's two. La Salle fell to 5-8 on the season, while AU improved to 5-5.
The Eagles look to continue their winning ways when the play Colgate at 11 a.m. Saturday in Hamilton, N.Y.
You can reach this staff writer at sflynn@theeagleonline.com.
