TROY, NY – The University of Rochester field hockey team saw its 2026 season come to a close, falling to top-seeded Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute 3-0 in the semifinals of the Liberty League Field Hockey Championship on Friday evening at Harkness Field.
Friday's matchup was a defensive battle through the first three quarters, with neither team being able to find the cage with a goal, and only 10 combined shots through that timeframe. Host and 20th-ranked Rensselaer (15-2) then exploded for three fourth quarter goals to earn the victory.
URochester, who was limited to just four shot attempts and five penalty corners in the game, sees its season record end at 13-7 overall.
The Yellowjackets were able to take the games first shot attempt, coming off the stick of
Hannah Mehta just 78 seconds into the contest. Mehta's backhand shot from the left wing about six yards off the endline sailed wide of the RPI cage.
A minute later, the Engineers were able to secure the first penalty corner of the game. On the corner, Ria Patel earned a shot on goal, but UR's first-year keeper
Riley Leeser was able to make a kick save on Patel's right wing shot.
Later in the first, the Yellowjackets earned their first corner attempts of the game, securing two on either side of the 9-minute mark of the quarter. The Yellowjackets ran the same play on both corners, with
Kristina Fedorova's left wing shot blocked before getting to the goal.
A minute later, UR earned two more corners, and after getting fouled on the first, the second one yielded another shot, this time by Mehta, but her backhand from just inside the circle sailed high.
In the second, RPI's Sophia Brown tested Leeser just 30 seconds in with a tough-angle backhand flick, but the Yellowjackets keeper was able to kick the ball away for another save.
Rochester was on defense for most of the second, and only ended up getting one shot attempt off in the 15 minutes, that by
Erin Foley, in the final ten seconds before halftime.
It was more of the same in the third quarter for the Yellowjackets, with RPI's defense holding the visitors without a shot attempt. The UR defense was almost nearly as good over the period though, holding the Engineers to just two shots, one by Brown and another by Patel, neither of which made it on goal.
Things changed in the fourth, as RPI was able to break through and end the scoreless deadlock after just 50 seconds. The opening score came off a corner, with Emily Frey notching the eventual game-winner. Frey started the play as the inserter and sent the ball to the top of the circle. After a stick-stop, Emily Dubord took a shot towards the goal and Frey redirected it into the short side for the 1-0 lead.
The lead doubled in the 52nd minute when a foot foul along the goal line on an Engineer shot resulted in a penalty stroke being awarded. RPI's Val Palmiotti stepped up to the mark and beat Leeser on her stick side to make it 2-0 Engineers with just about eight minutes left in the contest.
Now trailing by two, the Yellowjackets pushed forward on offense, earning a penalty corner shortly after Palmiotti's goal, but the set play took too long to develop and the Engineer defense was able to break up the goal scoring opportunity.
In the closing seconds of the contest, RPI added a third goal, matching its team score in an earlier 3-2 win this season against the Yellowjackets at Fauver Stadium. The final tally on Friday was a rebound goal stuffed in by Katie Galgay with just 19 seconds remaining on the clock.
With the win, RPI advances to the Liberty League Championship Game on Sunday against second-seeded Union College. Union upended Vassar 4-3 in the other Friday semifinal in the conference tournament, with Sunday's winner earning the conference's automatic bid into the NCAA Division III Tournament.
