By Nick Pantages
@nick_pantages22
Field Hockey
Springfield lost both of its contests this week – both coming to nationally ranked opponents. On Sept. 20 the Pride were clipped by no. 14 Trinity College, in a 5-0 loss on the road. Although failing to get anything going offensively, junior goaltender Neilee Hess made 21 saves in the loss. The offense came alive for the second game of the week, but it was not enough, suffering a 4-3 overtime loss to no. 23 MIT. The Pride held a 3-2 lead into the fourth period, courtesy of two Hailey Gaydos goals and another by Kaitlin Bardellini; but MIT’s Paige Forrester tied it up with 10 minutes left, and then completed her hat-trick by scoring 72 seconds into overtime to give the Engineers the win. Springfield looks to right the ship next week and grab its first NEWMAC conference win against WPI on Saturday, Sept. 27.
Football
The Pride rushed for a program-record 686 yards in a blowout 63-14 win over Coast Guard. Springfield had seven different players find the endzone in the win – scoring a touchdown in every quarter. Four players ran for over 90 yards, with fullback Arsen Shtefan and quarterback Jacob Silvester leading the way with 140 and 124 yards, respectively. Running back Sean Brown was named NEWMAC Special Teams Player of the Week for his scoop and score touchdown after Nick Peterson blocked a Coast Guard punt. Springfield’s offensive line received national honors as well, helping guide the Pride to an average of 402 yards per game on the ground, which is tops in Division III. A trip to Worcester, Mass. and WPI awaits head coach Mike Cerasuolo’s squad on Saturday, Sept. 27.
Golf
First-year Justin Acquarulo led the Pride in the Bowdoin Invitational to a 19th place finish. Acquarulo shot a team-best 78 in his final round on Sunday, Sept. 24, finishing tied for 78th – the best performance of the weekend for Springfield. David Girourd was just two strokes behind him, tying for 88th as the next best. Springfield will take part in the MASCAC invitational next weekend.
Men’s Soccer
Coach Tommy Crabill’s squad went undefeated this past week. The Pride played to a scoreless draw in their first fixture of the week on Saturday, Sept. 23 at Clark, led by yet another stellar performance by Noah Pote in net, with his three saves keeping Clark off the scoresheet. Tuesday saw the Pride’s biggest win of the season, a 4-0 triumph against Framingham St. The Pride offense was very spread out, as four different players netted a score. Maitoe Suppasuesanguan and Parker Thornton each contributed a goal and an assist. Tristan Moran scored his second goal of the season, while Charlie Heth scored for the first time in his young career. The Pride welcome Coast Guard next Saturday before hitting the road to take on Skidmore.
Women’s Soccer
Jen Walker scored a brace and Taryn Ryan saved all three shots against her to keep a clean sheet as Springfield won their lone game of the week, a 2-0 home win against Clark. Walker scored twice in five minutes in the first half, with sophomores Meredith Healy and Natalia Mottura assisting her. The win pushed the Pride to 4-1-2 overall, and 2-0-0 in NEWMAC play/ Springfield will take on Rensselaer and Wheaton next week.
Women’s Volleyball
The Pride finished 3-0 on the week, highlighted by a massive upset win over nationally ranked MIT – their first win over the Engineers since 2018. Riley Donahue continued her season-long dominance, passing the 20 kill mark three separate times. Donahue set a career high in kills in the victory over no. 16 MIT, then added 22 in the next two wins over UC Santa Cruz and Clark. Springfield also received big contributions from first-year setter Tori Colosimo, who set her career-high in assists with 45 in the five-set victory against MIT. The Pride play twice on the road next week, traveling to Emerson on Saturday and Smith on Tuesday.