A week ago, I would have told you that American University’s field hockey season was headed in the wrong direction, but after wins over Lafayette College and the University of Pennsylvania, the Eagles are back on the right track. The losses for American seemed to be piling up at the beginning of the season, opening with a record of 2-4. It is important to keep in mind, however, that three of those four losses were in overtime, including against Virginia, who was ranked third in the country at the time.
The Eagles opened their conference play at Lafayette, which turned out to be a double-overtime thriller. After battling with the Leopards for an entire game, plus 11.5 minutes of overtime, senior midfielder Agustina Roffo ended the game by poking her stick into a pass that was sure to be intercepted by a Lafayette defender, putting the ball into the back of the bottom-right corner of the net. Celebration erupted immediately, but it signified something more.
This resilience and effort to start the conference season on a winning note should send a message that this team is as good as they are advertised.
Roffo needed that goal. She was chosen to be on the preseason all-conference team but had not scored a goal before her game-winner against Lafayette. If Roffo can continue to improve her offensive stats, the Eagles will see more success.
Another preseason all-conference player for the Eagles, graduate student Bryn Underwood, earned her second Patriot League goalkeeper of the week honor of the season on Sept. 30, a good sign for American’s defensive efforts going further into conference play.
Underwood’s performance is not the problem. The Eagles’ offense has been extremely inconsistent in terms of scoring.They have been shutout twice this season, while other times they have scored four goals in dominant fashion.
The defense has done their job, allowing three or less goals during all of their games. The backline has also shutout teams in four of the five wins this season, which leads me to believe that if the defense does well, the whole team does well.
In the end, it will come down to the Eagles' consistency. If they can finish on more of their offensive chances, there is no doubt the results they want to see will be more frequent.
As much as people may have had their doubts after the start of the season, head coach Steve Jennings’ unmatched reputation gives me nothing to worry about for the Eagles. Jennings undoubtedly knows what the team needs to improve upon, and he knows how to accomplish their goals.
Even after a tough loss to Delaware at home on Sept. 22, Jennings still had confidence in his team. He knew how close they were, and he offered his thoughts on how they would improve.
“We just didn’t end up having the finishing touch, you know? We were super, super close and [if] any of those [shots] go in it’s a different game,” Jennings previously told The Eagle. “I’m really happy about how we’re playing overall from a process standpoint, and now we just have to be a little bit better on some of the outcomes.”
He gives me no reason to think anything different, and fans shouldn’t look too far into the team’s record. They will continue to get better, and they are on a good path to defend their Patriot League title.
This article was edited by Penelope Jennings, Delaney Hoke and Abigail Turner. Copy editing done by Luna Jinks, Emma Brown and Sabine Kanter-Huchting.
