YORK, PA – The #11 York College field hockey squad put together their most complete game of the year as they blanked St. Mary's College 4-0 in a non-conference contest in York.
The Spartans scored early and maintained control of the game with a strong defensive effort that limited St. Mary's to just two shots in the game.
The Spartans improve to 3-0 as they earned their first shutout of the year. St. Mary's falls to 1-2 overall.
 
How It Happened
• The Spartans came out firing as they pressured the St. Mary's defense from the start. That pressured paid dividends in the game's tenth minute. Riley Buschert slipped a pass to the center of the circle where Tori Heiserman collected the pass and drilled home a shot, giving York the 1-0 lead. The goal was Heiserman's second of the year. The Seahawks got a corner and a blocked shot in the last 50 seconds of the quarter but the Spartans stymied the attempt as they took the 1-0 lead after 15 minutes of play.
• York quickly made it 2-0 when St. Mary's was called for an infraction that resulted in a penalty stroke. Buschert calmly stepped to the spot and drilled home the attempt for the 2-0 lead. The Spartan barrage continued 11 minutes later as York drew a penalty corner. Buschert inserted the ball to Becca Olsen. Olsen slipped a pass over to Libby Wild who drove home the shot for the 3-0 Spartan lead. The Spartans scored their two second quarter goals on just three shots.
• York again carried the play in the third as they out shot St. Mary's 5-1 while they also held a 4-1 margin in penalty corners but the Green and White could not add to their lead. 
• The Spartans kept up the pace in the fourth quarter as they drew another penalty stroke with just over ten minutes left in the game. Buschert converted the chance again, pushing the Spartan lead to 4-0.
• York finished the game holding an 18-2 edge in total shots and a 9-0 bulge in shots on goal. York also had an 11-2 advantage in penalty corners. Two St. Mary's goalies combined for five saves in the match.
 
Spartan Notes
The Spartans are now 26-11 all-time against their former Capital Athletic Conference rival … York has won four straight in the series and 11 of the last 12 between the two squads … senior Belle Fields picked up her 33^rd win of her career as she also posted her 18^th career shutout … senior Riley Buschert has scored in each of the Spartans' three games including two tallies in Saturday's win … Buschert had a season-high five points on her two goals and one assist … sophomore Tori Heiserman scored her second career goal in the win as she has now scored in both of the Spartan home games this year … senior Libby Wild notched her eighth career goal in the victory while Becca Olsen recorded her first collegiate point with the assist on Wild's goal … the four goals were a season-high for the Spartan offense as were the 18 shots … York was 2-for-3 in penalty strokes for the game … the Green and White had four strokes all year in 2023 … the Spartans limited the Seahawks to just two shots with neither attempt coming on goal.
 
Up Next
The Spartans return to action on Wednesday evening when they host Swarthmore in a non-conference contest. The match is slated for a 7:00 pm start at Kinsley Field.