YORK, PA – The York College field hockey team stayed hot with a big offensive day in the 8-0 MAC Commonwealth win over Eastern University on a beautiful Saturday in York. After a slow first half, the Spartan offense erupted for six second half goals to cruise to the win.

The 13^th ranked Spartans improve to 12-4 overall and 6-1 in the league while the Eagles fall to 4-12 overall and 1-6 in the league.
The win clinches the second seed in the upcoming Commonwealth tournament for the Spartans.
 
How It Happened
• The Spartans wasted little time in getting on the board as Katie Martino notched the game's first goal just 3:41 into the game. Maggie Spadafora played a ball in from the left wing and Martino was on the far post and tapped the ball into the cage for her first goal of the game. York made it 2-0 just under four minutes later as Hannah Huffman scored a great goal, sneaking in a harsh angle shot from just above the left end line for her fourth goal of the year.
• The scoreless second quarter didn't provide many offensive opportunities as York out shot the Eagles 4-0 with all four shots coming on cage.
• The second half offensive fireworks started 1:49 into the quarter as the Eagles were whistled for a stroke. Lindsey Cowan stepped up and put home the chance for the 3-0 York lead. Five minutes later, Martino scored her second goal of the game as Riley Buschert played a ball from the top of the circle into Martino. Martino finished off the chance for the 4-0 Spartan advantage. The Green and White got a second penalty stroke opportunity at the 39:25 mark of the game. Erin Kistler finished off the chance for the first goal of her collegiate career.
York held a 9-0 margin in third quarter shots.
• York kept it rolling in the fourth quarter as Martino completed her hat trick 1:54 into the final quarter. Huffman played the ball in from the right wing and Martino tipped it home for her 15^th goal of the year. Sara Pique made it 7-0 in the 55^th minute as Kistler played the ball in from the left wing and Pique finished off the play for her second goal of the year. The final goal of the game came with 1:54 left in the game and may have been the prettiest of the game. Carrie Shuey chipped the ball in front of the cage where Kat Knox popped the ball into the back of the net for her 11^th goal of the season.
 
Spartan Notes
York is now 2-0 all-time against Eastern as they have outscored the Eagles 11-0 in the two matches they have played … the eight goals was a season-high for the Spartans besting the 6-0 score at Wilkes … York has won three in a row with all three coming via the shutout … York pushed their school record for shutouts to 11 … York has outscored their 16 opponents 50-8 … junior Katie Martino tallied a career-high three goals as she now has a team-leading 15 for the year … Martino now has five multi-goal games for the year … her six points were also a new career-high … Martino leads the Spartans with four game-winning goals … freshman Erin Kistler notched her first career points as she had a goal followed by an assist for three points … freshman Kat Knox now has 23 points for the year on 11 goals and one assist … York now has five players in double figures in points as Martino (32), Knox (23), Riley Buschert (14), Hannah Huffman (12), and Maggie Spadafora (10) lead the Spartans in scoring … the three Spartan goalies all played in the shutout win … Belle Fields started and played the first 36:50 followed by Kaitlyn Wallace (18:53) and Abby Sims (4:17) making her collegiate debut … York converted their two penalty strokes in the game after going 0-for-4 in their previous attempts in 2022 … York leads the MAC Commonwealth in goals scored (50) and goals against (8) … the Spartan save percentage leads the league at 84% … Martino now leads the Commonwealth in goals while Knox is third … Martino is second in points while Knox is fifth … Spadafora (3^rd), Carrie Shuey (4^th), and Buschert (5^th) are ranked in assists in the league … the Spartans clinched the second seed in the MAC Commonwealth tournament for the second straight year.
 
Up Next
The Spartans close out their regular season home schedule on Wednesday as they host Stevenson University in their 2022 Commonwealth finale. Game time at Kinsley Field is set for 6:00 pm.