GREENWOOD - The Converse Valkyries have had the Lander Field Hockey team's number in the last four meetings between the two teams, including ending the Blue and Gold's season in the SAC Tournament last season.
On Tuesday, however, it was a different story.
The Bearcats scored five goals in the first half and used that to cruise to their first-ever win over the two-time defending SAC Champions by a score of 6-2.
With the win the Bearcats improved to 6-2 on the year and in SAC play while Converse fell to 5-5 overall and 3-4 in SAC play.
Lander applied pressure early on as they were awarded a pair of penalty corners under five minutes into the match and would get shots off that forced saves from the Converse keeper. However, as they did in the first matchup of the season, Lander would strike first as a cross from Justina Bossa (Cordoba, Argentina) would find Aniek Vreeken (Utrecht, Netherlands) to give Lander the 1-0 lead after the first 15 minutes of action.
Unlike the first meeting between the two teams, Lander would make sure that Converse would have a deeper hole to work out of as they added four goals in the second quarter, the most scored in a single quarter in program history.
Sara Van Hoijtema (Warmond, Netherlands) would get the scoring started not even three minutes in off a saved shot from Mollie McGann (Fredericksburg, Va.). With just under five minutes left in the quarter Merle Vieregge (Düsseldorf, Germany) would find Bossa and grow the Lander lead to 3-0.
However, Converse would get a goal back a minute later as a scrum in front of the net would find the back of the cage. But Lander would respond quickly as Lauren Punt (Maasdam, Netherlands) scored just over a minute after the Valkyrie goal to restore the three goal lead.
Finally right before halftime, a Victoria Hulst (Maarssen, Netherlands) penalty corner found Charlotte Van Galen (Bussum, Netherlands) who let loose a shot that deflected off a Converse player and in to give Lander a 5-1 lead heading into halftime.
Less than three minutes after the halftime break, Hulst would find herself on the scoring end of a goal from a Vreeken assist to make it 6-1 in favor of the hosts.
Converse would have a couple of chances to get back into the game but reigning SAC Defensive Player of the Week, Isabel Elenga (Hillegom, Netherlands), would record two big saves to preserve the cushion.
The visitors would get a goal back on a penalty stroke just before the quarter break to make it 6-2 and would have another chance to make it 6-3 from the spot in the fourth quarter but Avery Tworkoski (Bernville, Pa.)Â would make her first ever save to preserve the four-goal lead and eventually the four-goal win.
The Lander Field Hockey team hits the road for their next matchup as they travel up Highway 34 to take on the tenth-ranked Newberry Wolves for a 1:00 PM start time.
