NEWBERRY — On a cold and rainy evening of field hockey, it was the Newberry Wolves (8-9, 3-6) that was able to find traction, securing a 2-0 victory over visiting conference opponent Converse College (1-14, 1-8).
The Wolves withstood some aggressive play from the Valkyries early on in the game, with reigning Conference Defensive Player of the Week Allison Davis securing her second consecutive shutout, her fourth overall on the season.
After regaining the momentum, it was Farai Kawonde who got the Wolves on the board in the first half, scoring an unassisted goal to add to her team-leading total of nine on the season. She corralled a rebound off a Brady Keeler shot that hit the post, sending the ball into the back of the net to score on a night where goals were at a premium.
That score held to halftime, when the visiting Valkyries elected to make a switch at goalie, but ultimately the move proved costly.
In the 40th minute, the Wolves earned a penalty corner with Megan Eisenhardt taking control of the ball. She sent the corner pass in to Chantel Gauthier on the wing, and she fired a deep rocket from just inside the arc that screamed past the goalkeeper, solidifying the final score at 2-0 in favor of Newberry.
Converse attempted to make things interesting late in the game, earning seven penalty corners in the second half and finding themselves in scoring positions on multiple occasions, but Davis and the Wolves defense proved too sturdy for the Valkyries.
Davis ended another stellar night with seven saves and no goals allowed. The Wolves outshot the Valkyries by a count of 14-12, while each team earned eight corners in the game.