CHESTER, Pa. (Sept. 14, 2016) – The Widener University field hockey team was dealt a 5-1 setback against Gwynedd Mercy on Wednesday evening at Edith R. Dixon Field.
 
Gwynedd Mercy (4-1) set the tone for the game early when Shannon Carroll found Brianna O'Connell for an uncontested score just 1:33 into the game. Widener tried to answer back and gaining nine penalty corner opportunities in the first half alone, but the Griffin defense turned everything away. After freshman Sam Scoma (Blue Bell, Pa.) had multiple shots stopped by goalkeeper Samantha Soscia, the Griffins came back the other way and doubled their lead on a tip in by Allie Bauder to take a 2-0 lead into the break.
 
The Griffins came out strong again in the second half and put the game away, as Melissa Russo recorded a natural hat trick in a span of 7:05 by finishing two passes from Carroll and another from Madison Reiss. The Pride improved their play later in the half following a timeout and got on the board with 24.2 seconds left when senior Meghan McLaughlin (Woolwich Township, N.J.) received a pass from junior captain Kayla Herr (Lancaster, Pa.) and fired on an unguarded Soscia for her first marker of the year. The deficit, however, was too much for the hosts to overcome.
 
Senior Mikayla Ninos (Northampton, Pa.) made four saves in the setback for Widener, which outshot its opponent by a 14-11 count and had a 10-7 advantage in penalty corners. Gwynedd Mercy's Soscia turned away six shots to earn the victory.
 
Widener (3-2) will regroup and be back in action when it hosts Delaware Valley on Wednesday, Sept. 21 at 7:00 p.m.