Oct. 7, 2007

Box Score

HARRISONBURG, Va. - California outshot No. 8 James Madison 15-1 in the second half but could not overcome a one-goal halftime deficit to lose, 2-1, to the Dukes on Sunday in 90-degree weather at the JMU Field Hockey Complex. The Golden Bears' record fell to 8-3, while James Madison improved to 11-2.

"It was the kind of game in which, by all the laws of the universe, you should come out on top," Cal head coach Shellie Onstead said. "We played an outstanding game. We got unlucky in terms of chances and their goalie played quite well. Normally when you get 20 chances, you're going to get some goals.

"The entire offense played really hard. We decided to go after their backs. It was the second game in a row playing in the heat, and these guys had the heart and the guts to do it. They just generated chance after chance after chance, and I can only think that's going to bode well for the future."

James Madison scored its goals over a span of six minutes and 14 seconds in the first half, with Melissa Stefaniak scoring the first and assisting on the second. The junior scored from the right side in the 15th minute and then supplied a long pass that set up teammate Dolores de Rooij for her goal in the 21st minute to give JMU a 2-0 lead.

Junior defender Christina McGrath pulled a goal back for the Bears in the 27th minute. Junior midfielder/forward Andrea Lo started the scoring sequence with a penalty corner, junior defender Rachel Moffitt made the stick stop and McGrath converted from the top of the circle for her third goal of the season.

Cal trailed, 2-1, at halftime.

As a sign of Cal's dominance everywhere but in the scoring column, McGrath outshot James Madison by herself, registering six shots for the game while the Dukes had just five overall. Also, Cal outshot JMU, 20-5, overall and collected 15 corners to JMU's two.

Cal forced JMU goalkeeper Kelsey Cutchins to make six of her eight saves in the second half, while Bears senior goalkeeper Liz Braasch and junior goalkeeper Kelly Knoche did not record any saves.

Lo took two corners in the final minutes and McGrath fired two shots that were blocked in the game's waning seconds. Of Cal's last six shots, Cutchins saved three and her teammates blocked three.

"The team learned that it's an elite team," Onstead added. "It doesn't show on the scoreboard yet, but they certainly outplayed No. 8 today."

The Bears return home for another match against a top-10 team when they host fourth-ranked Wake Forest at 5 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 12. Cal then hosts Northwestern at 11 a.m. on Sunday, Oct. 14.

GAME SUMMARY

Goal Summary

James Madison - Melissa Stefaniak (Lauren Walls) 14:42
James Madison - Dolores de Rooij (Melissa Stefaniak) 20:56
Cal - Christina McGrath (Rachel Moffitt, Andrea Lo) 26:21

Goals by Period
	         1	2	F

California 1 0 1 James Madison 2 0 2 Shots by Period 1 2 F California 5 15 20 James Madison 4 1 5 Penalty Corners by Period 1 2 F California 6 9 15 James Madison 2 0 2