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Five minutes into the game, SU forward Sabine van den Eijnden found herself uncovered near the top of the circle. Joy Haarman had dribbled right in front of the goal, pausing and sending the ball back to van den Eijnden. She slotted the goal in the bottom right corner of the goal, giving SU the early one-goal advantage.

“I think that she’s just finding the areas and taking her opportunities on every shot,” head coach Ange Bradley said.

Van den Eijnden tallied a hat trick as Syracuse defeated Cornell 5-0, led by its stifling defense and dominant offense. Van den Eijnden’s second and third goals were both unassisted as she created her own offense that gave the Orange a big advantage. The win was the Orange’s fifth straight and van den Eijnden doubled her season goal total from three to six.

“What really worked today was lifting it (the ball),” van den Eijnden said. “Also being able to change speed with the ball by slowing it, and accelerating it.”

Throughout the game, van den Eijnden was confident with the ball. She looked for ways to create space for others or make her own offense. Her positioning on the field was key as well, and the ball continued to make its way to her while she pressed into Cornell territory.

Syracuse’s back end and midfield constantly created turnovers from Cornell. Van den Eijnden consistently converted on those opportunities the defense gave her.

Halfway into the second quarter, van den Eijnden evaded multiple defenders while tiptoeing on Cornell’s goal line and trickled the ball low by Cornell’s goaltender to increase the Orange’s lead to 4-0. At that point, she had essentially put the game to rest.

“She always shoots the ball (in practice) and we are starting to get our connections a little better off of her,” Bradley said.

Shooting was a point of emphasis in the practices that led up to this game, Bradley said. That preparation benefited van den Eijnden, as this game highlighted one of her biggest strengths on the field.

“I like shooting and we practiced it a lot this week too, so it’s nice to immediately show it,” van den Eijnden said.

It was apparent that the Orange had an easier time moving their offense into and within Cornell’s territory when van den Eijnden was in the game. There was a consistent flow in terms of ball movement, and Cornell’s defense was on their heels at all times. When she wasn’t on the field, Syracuse had a tougher time setting up its offense, unable to run a complete attack.

Bradley said that van den Eijnden’s high field hockey IQ and situational awareness has helped her lead SU’s offense when she needs to.

“She really studies the game quite a bit off the field, and looks at a lot of video and thinks about the game away from the field,” Bradley said.

Not only did van den Eijnden contribute with her goal scoring, but she was also in control of Syracuse’s offense as a whole. Her willingness to find open teammates and create ball movement gave the Orange the ability to open up space for the forwards. Most of the time, it ended in a score for herself.

“We have really powerful strikers,” van den Eijnden said. “And we all give the ball to each other. And that makes us really strong.”

At the start of the fourth quarter, van den Eijnden evaded two Cornell defenders, sliding the ball under one of the players’ legs. She bent down, smacking the ball into the top right corner of the net for Syracuse’s final score of the afternoon.

But van den Eijnden was not done. Her third goal of the night was the most memorable play of the match. At the start of the fourth quarter, van den Eijnden evaded 2 Cornell defenders, slid the ball under one players’ legs, and lifted the ball into the top right corner for Syracuse’s final goal of the afternoon.

Published on October 9, 2022 at 7:07 pm

Contact Cooper at: ccandrew@syr.edu | @cooper_andrews