BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Marta Considine (Jr., Wilmette, Ill./Loyola Academy) scored five times to claim Player of the Game honors and goalie Manuela Herrera (Jr., Windermere, Fla./Olympia) went the distance in stopping seven shots as the Bucknell University Bison downed No. 25-ranked Brown University in the consolation round of the 2017 CWPA Championship at Indiana University’s Counsilman-Billingsley Aquatic Center.
The victory avenges an 8-7 regular season-concluding loss to the Bears (19-10, 3-7 CWPA) on Sunday, April 9, at Hartwick College in Oneonta, N.Y. and advances Bucknell (14-17, 3-7 CWPA) into the Fifth Place game on Sunday, April 30, at 10:30 a.m. against either Saint Francis University, No. 16/host Indiana or George Washington University. The Bison went 2-2 against the trio in splitting with George Washington (8-7 L, 14-6 W), faling to Indiana (12-7 L) and stopping Saint Francis (12-5 W) during their regular season showdowns.
Fouls were the predominant factor in the contests outcome as Bucknell drew 16 ejections and converted on eight, while Brown mustered a one-for-five performance on their limited man-up chances.
The Bison never trailed in the game as Colleen Barron (Jr., Darien, Ill./Fenwick) broke the ice by cashing in on a six-on-five bid off an assist from Tegan Stanbach (Sr., Menlo Park, Calif./Saint Francis) with 6:48 remaining on the first quarter clock. Barron factored in Bucknell’s next strike as well as she dropped off a pass to Considine who cashed in on her own man-up chance at 5:55 to stake the Orange & Blue to a 2-0 lead through the opening eight minutes of play.
Brown chopped the margin down to a single goal twice in the second quarter thanks to Jessica Heilman (Jr., Menlo Park, Calif./Menlo Atherton) who delivered on an assist from Marisa Kolokotronis (Sr., Sacramento, Calif./St. Francis) at 7:09 and swished an unassisted tally at 3:56 to sandwich Bucknell’s third man-up goal by Considine at 5:37 to make it 2-1 and 3-2.
However, the Bison charged into halftime as Considine drilled in yet another six-on-five opportunity at 2:32 before Barron bombed in an even-strength goal – Bucknell’s first of the game – with 25 seconds on the clock to set the scoreboard at 5-2 entering the break.
The Bison wasted little time in burying Brown under a tidal wave of goals as Considine (7:24, man-up; 4:46 man-up) and Barron (5:42, even-strength) rattled off back-to-back-to-back strikes to build the margin to 8-2.
Heilman snapped the streak by completing a hat-trick at 4:41 to awaken the Bears from their offensive slumber and close to within 8-3, but Emily Konishi (So., Sant Ana, Calif./Foothill) responded courtesy a five-meter penalty shot at 4:22 to expand the gap back to six at 9-3.
Allison Woo (So., Arcadia, Calif./Polytechnic School) inched the Bears back to within five at 9-4 prior to the close of the third quarter by hitting the twine at 2:29. Heilman followed up Woo’s marker 34 seconds into the fourth quarter by cashing in on an exclusion call against Bucknell to put the Bears within four (9-5) for the first time since a 6-2 deficit with 7:24 remaining in the third quarter.
Needing a score to snap Brown’s momentum and make the road back harder for the No. 25-ranked team in latest National Top 25 Poll, Stanbach delivered by completing a centering pass from Konishi at 6:53 for the Bison’s eighth and final man-up score in grabbing a 10-5 lead.
Bucknell ran the clock on their remaining offensive possessions, while Heilman and McKenna Miller (So., Danville, Calif./Monte Vista) flushed feeds from Maigrie McDougal (So., Sacramento, Calif./Rio Americano) and Hannah Eliot (Fr., Los Angeles, Calif./Harvard-Westlake) with 1:46 and 1:00 remaining on the fourth quarter clock, respectively, for the 10-7 final score.
For Bucknell, Barron joined Considine in recording hat-tricks. Konishi and Stanbach both added solo markers in the win.
On the other end of the tank, Heilman led the way for the Bears and tied with Considine for game-high scoring honors with five goals. Miller and Woo both found the back of twine once with Marisol Dakan (Jr., Pasadena, Calif./La Salle) suffering the loss with five saves.
The defeat places Brown into a do-or-die game at 6:00 p.m. this evening against the loser of a consolation game pitting Indiana-vs.-George Washington to decide which team advances to the Seventh Place game and which finishes ninth in the nine-team field.
In the history of the championship, Brown has finished seventh or lower three previous times with prior First (2001), Second (2003), Fourth (2004, 2009, 2012), Fifth (2000, 2007, 2008, 2013, 2014, 2015), Sixth (2002, 2010), Seventh (2005, 2016) and Ninth (2011) place marks.
| Teams | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | — | Final |
| Bucknell University (14-17, 3-7 CWPA) |
2 | 3 | 4 | 1 | — | 10 |
| Brown University (19-10, 3-7 CWPA) | 0 | 2 | 2 | 3 | — | 7 |
Brown Goals: Jessica Heilman (5); McKenna Miller; Allison Woo
Bucknell Goals: Marta Considine (5); Colleen Barron (3); Emily Konishi; Tegan Stanbach
Saves: Brown – Marisol Dakan (5) ; Bucknell – Manuela Herrera (7)
Exclusions: Brown – 16 ; Bucknell – 5
Advantage Opportunities: Brown – 1-for-5 ; Bucknell – 8-for-16
Sprints: Brown – 0-for-4 ; Bucknell – 4-for-4
Cards: YC – Brown (Head coach Felix Mercado, 4:13 left in 2nd Quarter)
Officials: Jamie Wolff, JR Perez
Bucknell University’s Emily Konishi unleashes a shot against Brown University goalie Marisol Dakan as Lexi Atwell (#13) closes
Brown University’s Marisa Kolokotronis prepares to shoot over Bucknell University’s Colleen Barron
