The Women's Field Hockey team on Saturday shut out Bucknell, 5-0, in its first Patriot League game.
Ranked 10th in the nation, the team just finished three tournaments and was well-prepared for regular season opener against Bucknell.
The Eagles' offense was a dominant force in the game, noticeably controlling the field in the first ten minutes of play. Freshman midfielder Maggie Hall took early advantage of this and scored the first goal of the game on Bucknell's goalkeeper, Liz Jordan.
Hall went on to score two more goals with an assist from sophomore forward Camila Infante.
"Our passing was good today, we had some really great connections," Hall said.
Sophomore Heidi Hershberger and Infante each found the net in the second half.
Sophomore goalkeeper Allison Fayfich managed a shutout with seven saves.
"They were good offensively, but we are just a really great defensive unit. We work well together," said Fayfich.
With its first league game out of the way, the women's team is looking ahead to the rest of the league season.
"The competition in the Patriot League is hard to figure out right now" said head coach Steve Jennings. "So many teams are up on game and down another. Right now our biggest competitor is Holy Cross, which is the last home game of the season."
"We played very well today; we controlled the game almost the entire time" said Jennings. "In our next few games we need to be able to finish better, and we need to fix problems in our deep defense."
AU will face James Madison in a home game on Wednesday and next league game is on Oct. 2 against Lafayette, followed by a match against local rival Maryland on Oct. 3.
