GALLOWAY, N.J. – The Ithaca College field hockey team continued its postseason on Saturday afternoon when it traveled to Stockton University for the Semifinal Round of the ECAC Division III Championships. Facing a red-hot Arcadia team in the second of two Semifinal Round contests on Saturday, the Bombers struggled to find the offense in a 2-0 defeat. With the defeat, Ithaca finishes the 2018 campaign with a 13-7 record.
 
The game shaped up as a tactical battle during the opening minutes and that trend played out for the majority of the contest. Although both teams were able to generate some attacking zone possession, the backlines buckled down to prevent much in the way of significant scoring chances.
 
The Knights struck first just shy of 20-minutes remaining in the opening half, capitalizing on one of IC's lone miscues in the defensive third on the day. With the Bombers holding possession deep in their own zone, Carly Flickinger was able to strip away the ball and fire a quick shot that surprised IC goalie Savanna Lenker. The goal snapped a 220-plus minute stretch for Lenker of not allowing a goal from the run of play. Her lone concession over the past three outings prior to today was on a penalty stroke in the ECAC Quarterfinal win over Alvernia.
 
The rest of the opening half was largely played in the midfield with only three combined shot attempts during the final 20-minutes entering halftime. The Knights had a pair of penalty corner chances, but Lenker was up to the task, making a save on her lone shot faced from Gabby Sedares. Senior striker Maria McGloin also had a scoring chance late in the half, but she was denied by Arcadia net-minder Ashton Evans.
 
When play resumed for the second session, Arcadia began to push the pace in an effort to expand the lead. Although Lenker held on strong, making four saves to keep the Bombers within striking distance, IC was unable to generate much on the other end. The Knights sealed the contest with 5:09 left, as Lindsay Bechtold made a great move to stickhandle and score on a slap-shot to double the lead at 2-0.
 
The Bombers would pull Lenker for a kicking-back in senior Shelby McDavid over the waning minutes, but Arcadia did well to keep play to the periphery to see out the 2-0 win.
 
The Bombers conclude the 2018 year with 13 wins, tying the 2015 squad for the most wins in a season since the late-1990's. It marked a six-win improvement for IC over last season and the program certainly looks to be on the rise under head coach Kaitlyn Wahila.