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KINGSTON — This new goal-oriented role is working out very well for Natalie Zasada.
And the rest of her Wyoming Valley West teammates don’t think it’s so bad, either.
Defender-turned-forward Zasada had a hat trick less than 10 minutes into the game and finished with four goals and two assists Wednesday as the Spartans stormed past Pittston Area, 9-0 in a Wyoming Valley Conference Division 1 field hockey game at Spartan Stadium.
“I’ve been playing forward for three games now,” Zasada, a sophomore, said. “I like it. It’s more running to do, but I like scoring.”
Apparently, a lot.
It took Zasada 30 seconds to score her first goal against the Patriots, then she added another with just 4:20 gone in the game to give the Spartans a 2-0 lead. Zasada scored again by lifting a high laser into the cage off a penalty corner with 20:09 to play in the first half, then assisted Foto Tsioles on Valley West’s fourth goal.
After Callie Edwards scored 8:45 before halftime to start a running clock in the second half, she set up Zasada for the opening score of the second half that put the Spartans in complete command with a 6-0 lead.
“We just wanted to keep going and make up for the game we lost,” Zasada said.
That one defeat is a sticking point with the Spartans.
Mainly, because it’s the reason they’re saddled in fifth place in Division 1 at 5-1-2 midway through the regular season. The loss came to Lackawanna Trail, which is tied for second place in the division with Wyoming Seminary at 7-1. Both Valley West ties came against co-division leaders Lake-Lehman and Crestwood, who are sitting at 5-0-1.
“It boosts our confidence,” Zasada said, “and makes us want to strive more to finish what we’re doing.”
Focus was far from a problem for the Spartans against an overmatched Pittston Area team that fell to 1-6.
Tsioles finished with two goals and an assist, Madison Woods added two assists and the Spartans defense held the Patriots without a shot while firing 32 scoring chances at the cage.
If they can keep up that rapid shooting, the Spartans are convinced they can make a run at the division during the second half of the season.
“I believe we can win this conference,” Zasada said. “We just have to keep pushing ourselves to get to where we want to be.”
Wyoming Seminary 13,
Tunkhannock 0
Nine different Seminary players scored with Alicia Carr, Hannah Maxwell, Emily Simms and Sarah Schulman each getting two goals.
The 7-1 Blue Knights outshot the Tigers 29-0.
Meyers 4,
Hanover Area 0
Selena Soto had two goals and an assist while Meghan Morris and Kendra Krolick each had a goal and an assist for the Mohawks, who moved to 5-1 and remained a game behind 6-0 Holy Redeemer in the WVC Division 2.
Coughlin 1,
Honesdale 0 (OT)
Jolene Ulichney scored the lone goal 2:17 into overtime to lift the Crusaders to victory. Katie Anderson assisted on the goal, while Briannah Lee made three saves in the shutout.
Hazleton Area 2, Dallas 1
Megan Reed assisted on the game’s first goal, then scored the winner 2:15 before halftime to lead the Cougars to victory. Margaret Fulton stopped 11 shots to preserve the win for Hazleton Area. Sam Banks scored the tying goal for Dallas.
Holy Redeemer 2,
Lackawanna Trail 1
Caton Fahey scored the winning goal 2:40 before halftime as the Royals captured a non-league game between two WVC teams in the hunt for division titles. Lauren Beamer gave Trail a 1-0 lead, but Abby Shorts tied it with a goal for Redeemer.
Wyoming Valley West 9, Pittston Area 0
Pittston Area`0`0`—`0
Wyoming Valley West`5`4`—`9
First half — 1. WVW, Natalie Zasada (Foto Tsioles), 29:30; 2. WVW, Zasada (Mercedes Jasterzenski), 25:40; 3. WVW, Zasada (Madison Woods), 20:09; 4. WVW, Tsioles (Zasada), 19:30; 5. WVW, Callie Edwards (Woods), 8:45. Second half — 6. WVW, Zasada (Edwards), 25:39; 7. WVW, Tsioles, 20:20; 8. WVW, Leah Romanowski (Zasada), 6:06; 9. WVW, Lizzy Owens (Irelynd Sullivan), 2:01.
Shots — PA 0; WVW 32. Saves — PA 23 (Shelby Gardner); WVW 0 (Nikki Hartzel). Penalty corners — PA 1; WVW 13.
Wyoming Seminary 13, Tunkhannock 0
Tunkhannock`0`0`—`0
Wyoming Seminary`6`7`—`13
First half — 1. SEM, Alex Wesneski, 21:26; 2. SEM, Alicia Carr (Aubrey Mytych), 17:27; 3. SEM, Kelsey Reznick, 15:27; 4. SEM, Allison Hohn (Julia Christian), 12:42; 5. SEM, Hannah Maxwell (Emily Simms), 7:21; 6. SEM, Maxwell (Mytych), 6:31. Second half — 7. SEM, Carr (Mytych), 28:30; 8. SEM, Simms (Carr), 20:25; 9. SEM, Mytych, 18:20; 10. SEM, Sarah Schulman (Camryn Litjens), 17:45; 11. SEM, Bari Lefkowitz (Christian), 14:33; 12. SEM, Simms, 10:00; 13. SEM, Schulman (Allison Hohn), 0:26.
Shots — TUN 0; SEM 24. Saves — TUN 11 (Tamara St. Clair); SEM 0 (Alexis Sokach, Mia Raineri). Penalty corners — TUN 0; SEM 8.
Meyers 4, Hanover Area 0
Meyers`2`2`—`2
Hanover Area`0`0`—`0
First half — 1. MEY, Selena Soto (Meghan Morris), 28:13; 2. MEY, Morris (Alexis Bruno), 5:18.
Second half — 3. MEY, Kendra Krolick (Soto), 3:46; 4. MEY, Soto (Krolick), 0:50.
Shots — MEY 8; HAN 2. Saves — MEY 2 (Olivia Jackson); HAN 4 (Christina Kratz). Penalty corners — MEY 4; HAN 4.
Coughlin 1, Honesdale 0 (OT)
Honesdale`0`0`0`—`0
Coughlin`0`0`1`—`1
Overtime — 1. COU, Jolene Ulichney (Katie Anderson), 12:13.
Shots — HON 3; COU 11. Saves — HON 10 (Brianna Potter); COU 3 (Briannah Lee). Penalty corners — HON 1; COU 9.
Hazleton Area 2, Dallas 1
Hazleton Area`2`0`—`2
Dallas`1`0`—`1
First half — 1. HAZ, Jill Buchman (Megan Reed), 9:16; 2. DAL, Sam Banks, 8:42; 3. HAZ, Reed (Anne Amentler), 2:15.
Shots — HAZ 11; DAL 12. Saves — HAZ 11 (Margaret Fulton); DAL 9 (Melinda Ratchford). Penalty corners — HAZ 1; DAL 9.
