I struggle to write this blog knowing that after this weekend our road to the Atlantic 10 Tournament has come to a halt.

It began with the Richmond game this past Friday. We practiced that week knowing that the coming weekend's games were crucial to our fate. Richmond is always a very skilled team. The past years have been tough losses to Richmond, however this season we were looking for a win. The game began with an SJU tap off at the center of the field. We kept the ball in our offensive end for quite some time. In my mind I began to think that this was the year we would finally beat Richmond. The Spiders managed to have some lucky breakaways that led to goals, and at halftime they led, 3-1.

All hope was not lost. We came out in the second half looking to even up the scoreboard. Richmond, unfortunately, fought to keep their lead. The final score of the match was 6-3. It was a devastating loss for the Hawks. This loss meant that we had to win every single one of our last three games in order to make it into the A-10 tournament. There was absolutely no room for error. If that isn't a tremendous amount of pressure, then I don't know what is.

We had only one day of practice to gather our thoughts and prepare for Sunday's game against La Salle. To make matters worse, we had the extreme disadvantage of playing on La Salle's grass turf, which is very different from the Astroturf we normally play on. This was a complete game-changer. The pace of the ball is much slower and very bouncy.

We came out hard in the first half, dominating in our offensive end. At halftime the score was 0-0. This was going to be a battle to the end, with both teams knowing this win was crucial for a spot in the tournament. I had a good feeling about the game. Everyone was playing their hardest. We wanted this win. We NEEDED this win. In the second half L aSalle scored two goals. The Hawks managed to score one in the last 25 seconds, but it was not enough. The game was over, and so was our chance of making the tournament. 

If heart alone could win games, we would have beaten La Salle by a long-shot. Everyone worked so hard, and to come up short is completely devastating. In my mind, we won that game. We outplayed them, outshot them and poured all our energy into that 70-minute span. The score doesn't show it, but it should. We should be in that tournament and the fact that we aren't will eat at me forever. For the seniors, we had a good run. We won't get to play with the team in another A-10 tournament, but we do have two conference games left to finish out our season. It will be hard to make it through our last collegiate week of field hockey, knowing the end is near. We have three practices before we pay a visit to Lock Haven on Friday and then end our season with Senior Day versus Saint Louis at home on Sunday. It's going to be a bittersweet day for the seniors, as the last chapter of our collegiate hockey careers comes to a close. The season isn't over yet, so let's end on a positive note as a team with two wins this week and soak up the last memories of the 2011 SJUFH season.

-Ellen