The URochester Yellowjackets played the Tufts University Jumbos Sept. 26, in a game of field hockey dedicated to Morgan Rodgers, a former lacrosse player from Duke University who passed in 2019 from suicide. The URochester field hockey chapter of Morgan’s Message was there to eliminate the stigma around mental health and asking for help when needed. The Morgan’s Message game is always the last home game in September, to round out Suicide Prevention Month.
The game unfortunately ended in a 4–1 loss for the Yellowjackets, but the game was action packed regardless of the score. The first half of the game was a battle between the ’Jackets and the Jumbos for who would get the first score. Though the Jumbos got the overall first goal from a penalty shot by senior Defense Claire Casey (23), the ’Jackets scored their first goal in the second quarter, thanks to senior Attack Grayson Honig (14). The equal scoring ended there.
The Jumbos’ Casey scored a second goal in the second quarter, marking the beginning of the story of the rest of the game. By the end of the match, the Jumbos had 14 shots on goal, compared to the 5 from the ’Jackets, but they had less saves on goal (1–6). While the semantics don’t matter in comparison to the scoring plays, knowing what went into each strategy tactic and decision is important to understand, and adds depth to the game.
The third quarter was a lot of back and forth across the field for the players on both teams. The Jumbos’ senior Forward Reagan Malo (17) scored the third goal for the team, making the score 3–1.
After a brief two-minute rest between the third and fourth quarters, Casey scored again, bringing the score to 4–1. Though the game ended in favor of the Jumbos, the message of the game and the dedication to Rodgers evened out the feelings on the field from the post-game score, leaving everyone feeling positively, even with the loss.
The ’Jackets played again on Sept. 27 at Allegheny College, winning with a final score of 3–0. Their next game is at Vassar College at 4 p.m. on Oct. 2, starting the Liberty League games.
