CHESTERTOWN, MD —  Junior Niki Micciche continued her goal scoring streak on Wednesday night as the 22nd-ranked Catholic University field hockey team defeated Washington College in a close 1-0 contest. Now sitting at 3-1, the Cardinals will open up Landmark Conference play on Saturday against Juniata. 

The start of the game brought a lot of back and forth action between both squads. The Shorewomen attacked first with a penalty corner and a shot four minutes into the contest, but the Cardinals pushed back with a shot by Mary Parker and a scrum in front of the goal that narrowly avoided the open cage. The goalies saw little action for the remainder of the quarter as both defenses held strong. 

Play remained even for much of the first half. Washington College gained possession off a few Catholic passes that went out-of-bounds. The Cardinals maintained control later in the period after a series of fouls by the Shorewomen. Catholic utilized its entire team to work the ball up the field, frequently swinging the ball back through its defenders to reverse the field. Neither team could convert these opportunities into goals and the game remained scoreless at half. 

The goal for the Cardinals came 43 seconds into the third quarter. Senior Kellie Caputo initiated a penalty corner to the top of the arc and a quick pass to the right found Emma Shallow with some space. Shallow played the ball in to Micciche who redirected the pass into the cage. This marks Micciche's third straight game with a goal and gives her 22 for her career. 

Catholic completed a strong defensive effort, allowing just one shot on target. Abigail Kearney made her lone save of the contest midway through the third quarter, turning away an attempt from Alexis Tackney. The Cardinals survived three late penalty corner chances for the Shorewomen to hold on for their first shutout of the season. 

The Cardinals host their first Landmark Conference matchup of the season on Saturday, September 16 at 1 p.m. against Juniata College.