An important game should be tense and thrilling, and EMU's field hockey clash with Shenandoah Wednesday night in Harrisonburg was just that.  The Hornets scored a goal early in the second half and held off a barrage of Eastern Mennonite shots, including one in the final seconds, to grab a 1-0 decision.  The result also broke a tie between the two teams in the ODAC standings.

The Royals entered the game knotted with SU for fourth in the league, giving the winner the inside track for the final home game in the ODAC Tournament quarterfinals.  EMU slips to 3-3 in the league and is one game ahead of Washington and Lee in the standings.

The women can clinch a tournament berth with one win over their final two games.  They play at Virginia Wesleyan (2-5) on Saturday before closing the regular season at first-place Lynchburg (6-0) next Wednesday.

Against Shenandoah, the Royals looked destined for a win by dominating play in the first half.  But despite an 11-2 advantage in shots over the first 35 minutes, the women couldn't score and sat in a scoreless tie at halftime.

The Hornets came out buzzing in the second and controlled the first five minutes.  After three penalty corners and five shots, SU got a score from Sarah Brock (Chesterfield, Va./Matoaca) in the 40th minute, as she found a rebounded shot and pounded the right side of the cage.

EMU went on the attack over the final 30 minutes, but were continually thwarted by the SU defense and their goalie, Sarah Clare (Mechanicsville, Va./Lee-Davis).  In the closing seconds, Camille Williams (Media, Pa./Delaware County Christian) broke loose in front of the cage, but Clare smothered her shot and time expired, leaving Eastern Mennonite short.

The Royals finished with an 18-11 advantage in shots, including 10-4 on goal.  Mary Beth Danaher (Matoaca, Va./Matoaca) made three saves for the women, while Clare charted ten.

Williams led all players with five shots, including three on goal.  Jenessa Derstine (Harleysville, Pa./Christopher Dock) and Melissa Cox (Mountville, Pa./Hempfield) each put two on goal.