FROSTBURG, Md. – The Frostburg State Field Hockey team picked up their first win of the year at home on Tuesday afternoon, taking down Slippery Rock 2-1.
 
Prior to the game, the FSU players honored their "MVP's", the Most Valuable Professors, who have made an impact on their academic and personal careers.
 
SRU came out the quicker of the two sides, earning a pair of early corners with a shot that was blocked in the first two minutes. The Bobcats settled down and earned a pair of corners of their own, of which senior Paige Leitzel saw a shot saved by keeper Emily Newton. Neither side was able to create much for the remainder of the period, with possession trading between each side of the field.
 
It took The Rock just a minute and a half to take the lead to start the second frame, with an early corner leading to a shot from the top of the arc that hit the post, as the rebound fell to Lucy Hutchinson, who found the back of the cage. Slippery Rock tried to capitalize on their advantage three minutes later, as another corner led to a pair of shots, but both were stopped by senior netminder Zoe Barnes. Frostburg locked down again and came up with a pair of chances nine minutes before the half, with both Leitzel and freshman Caroline Earnshaw denied by Newton.
 
Just over a minute later, FSU thought they had their equalizer, however Leitzel's shot was taken too high off a corner and disallowed. Now under five minutes until the break, Earnshaw made a surging run down the right side and crossed into the box, where freshman Brooke Saul deflected it into the path of sophomore Layla Lagunas to sweep home for a 1-1 tie. The Bobcats won a trio of corners in the final minute, as junior Mikyla Rineer and senior Aubree Dorsey both had shots saved by Newton to preserve the tie at halftime.
 
Each side traded chances back and forth in the third, with The Rock having the first attempt blocked while Leitzel was again stopped by Newton in the first five minutes. Barnes came up with a save of her own before the Bobcats began to take control of the game. After earning two straight corners, Letizel was twice stopped by Newton, while sophomore Rachel Young nearly gave Frostburg the lead off a rebound, but Slippery Rock had Haylie Sucharski on the line to sweep it away from goal.
 
FSU continued to be the dominant side in the fourth, as Leitzel continued to test Newton in net. Sophomore Sofia Boyle was also denied on back-to-back attempts, then Frostburg finally got their breakthrough midway through the period. After an SRU yellow card and a giveaway, the Bobcats put the ball into the arc, where junior Avery Hayden played into Leitzel's path as she finally got the better of Newton for a 2-1 advantage.
 
The Rock received a second yellow just over five minutes from time, as Hayden nearly put the result to bed but was thwarted by Sucharski on the line. Slippery Rock pushed for an equalizer despite being down a player, as Barnes came up with a save off a corner with less than a minute remaining, giving Frostburg the 2-1 victory.
 
The Bobcats held a 16-9 advantage in shots, with 15 on goal compared to five for the visitors, as Barnes made four saves in goal.
 
With the win, Frostburg improves to 1-6 on the year, while SRU drops to 3-3. FSU next hits the road for their PSAC opener against Bloomsburg on Saturday, September 27 at 2 p.m. Information and updates will be posted to frostburgsports.com.