POUGHKEEPSIE, NY – For the second time in as many weeks, Rochester and Vassar met in a battle of top-10 teams in Division III field hockey, with the host Brewers emerging with a victory for the second time, winning by a 1-0 score on Saturday afternoon at Weinberg Field.
 
This time around the matchup was for the Liberty League title and automatic berth into the NCAA Division III Tournament.  With the win Vassar (18-1), earns its first ever conference title in field hockey, coming one season after the Yellowjackets (18-2) earned their first Liberty League title.
 
Neither team could generate much in the way of offense for the better part of the first half.  Rochester though, did have some offensive pressure late in the period which led the UR's 7-5 shot advantage and 4-1 corner lead at intermission.
 
The Yellowjackets also had a ball find the cage, but it was ruled that an infraction occurred before that happened and instead UR had to settle for a penalty corner.  Also in the final minute, Amanda Strenk had a shot deflect off the post and Nancy Basnbach tried a lifted shot off a PC which ended up being swept away for a defensive save by Monica Feeley.
 
Vassar turned the tables in the second half and had a number of good scoring opportunities in the first six minutes.  Rochester's Kate Kujawa and the UR defense withstood the challenge though, turning away three Brewer shots on goal in that stretch.
 
In the 51st minute the Brewers nearly struck for a goal, but Alyssa More's shot was cleared off the line by Courtney Dunham for a defensive save.
 
On the ensuing penalty corner though, More got her revenge by finding the back of the net for a 1-0 Vassar lead, hitting a low shot from the right wing just inside the right post.  Megan Caveny picked up the assist on the play after inserting the corner.
 
The Yellowjackets countered in the next few minutes, but Vassar's defense produced two more defensive saves, denying Maya Haigis and Nancy Bansbach goals on back to back shots in the 58th minute.  Rochester earned a corner after the scramble, but Strenk's backhand shot from the top of the circle sailed just wide.
 
For the game, Vassar held a 13-11 edge in shots, while Rochester took six corners to the Brewers four.  Kujawa made five saves in the UR net while Liz Rotolo made four stops for Vassar.
 
Rochester now must wait and see if its resume is good enough to earn one of five at-large berths into the NCAA Division III Tournament.  The field for nationals will be announced on NCAA.com on Sunday evening.