Dukes Cruise Past Northeastern, 4-0

Friday, October 20

Harrisonburg, Va.

6 p.m.

James Madison University

(9-5, 2-1CAA)

Northeastern

(7-9, 2-2CAA)

Northeastern

JMU

10/20/2017 9:01:00 PM | Field Hockey

Box Score @JMUFieldHockey Box Score FH on Instagram Photo Gallery

HARRISONBURG, Va. - Junior Miranda Rigg tallied her 10th and 11th goals of the season on Friday night, leading No. 16 James Madison to a 4-0 victory over Northeastern in Colonial Athletic Association field hockey action at the JMU Field Hockey Complex. The win pushed JMU to 9-5 (2-1 CAA) on the year, while the Huskies fell to 7-9 (2-2 CAA).

The Dukes controlled the match throughout, outshooting Northeastern by a 12-7 margin and putting nine of their shots on target. Rigg scored the first and last goals of the contest, with sophomore Lisa Lejeune and senior Melanie Kusakavitch each adding second-half goals of their own.

HOW THEY SCORED
15:10 | Rigg opened the scoring on a breakaway on the quarter-hour, taking a pair of touches to break behind the defense before burying the one-on-one shot to stake the Dukes an early lead.
39:41 | Lejeune doubled the Dukes' advantage just after halftime, capitalizing on traffic in the mouth of the goal to punch home her eighth goal of the season from just a few yards out.
58:43 | Kusakavitch put the contest out of reach just before the hour mark, going on a solo run up the left wing before cutting back across the middle and bouncing her fifth goal into the net from eight yards out.
62:15 | Rigg provided the capper just minutes later, as junior Ashley Gippe charged up the right wing before feeding a pass across the net. Rigg needed just one touch to bury the shot from the middle of the circle.

MATCH NOTES
- Senior Melanie Kusakavitch scored her fifth goal of the season on Friday, putting the latest touch on a scoring run that has seen her score a goal in four consecutive matches.
- Junior Miranda Rigg posted a goal in each half, giving her eight career multi-goal matches in her collegiate career.
- Senior goalkeeper Sara Kraeutler needed just three saves to notch her fourth shutout of the season, the 10th of her standout career.

QUOTING COACH MORGAN
"Today one of our greatest assets is we played connected hockey. You couldn't say 'well, there's the star on the team.' We don't really have a star; everyone plays hard out on that field. When you play this way and everyone contributes and adds value, the players are all motivated to play and eager to grow. Our goal is to continue to grow our game, becoming more effective inside the attacking circle and on the defensive end, and that will be our main focus going forward."

UP NEXT
The Dukes will close out their regular-season home schedule on Sunday, Oct. 22, with a noon bout against Hofstra at the JMU Field Hockey Complex. Prior to the contest, JMU will recognize its senior class in a brief ceremony.