RICHMOND, Va. – The Lafayette field hockey team came on strong at the end of the second half to make it interesting at Richmond on Friday afternoon, but an early four-goal deficit proved too much to overcome in a 4-2 defeat on the road.

After a bumpy first half, the Leopards were a completely different team in the game's final 35 minutes, winning the second half by a 2-1 margin. Shots favored Richmond 9-1 at the break, but swung heavily in Lafayette's favor after halftime, holding a 16-2 edge. Unfortunately, just two of those 16 shots found the back of the cage as time expired on the road defeat.

Juniors Sam Di Maio and Lisa van der Geest were the goal-scorers for the Maroon and White, with tallies coming in the 48^th and 61^st minutes. Freshman Mary Gould and junior Jenn DeLongis picked up assists on the van der Geest marker, while Di Maio's goal was unassisted, finding the breakthrough after a scramble in front of goal.

A corner opportunity allowed the second goal to surface as van der Geest ripped a shot past Richmond goalkeeper Emily Braunewell for the score. That was one of the few shots that beat Braunewell on the day as she finished with an impressive 11 saves, as 13 of Lafayette's 17 shots were put on target.

Junior Sarah Park and freshman Hailey Abbott split time between the pipes as Abbott earned her first collegiate time in the second half. Park allowed three goals and made two saves in her 35 minutes of play, while Abbott had one and one, respectively in 32:46 of action, with an extra field player occupying the goalkeeper spot for the final 2:14.

Van der Geest was a force offensively, finishing with a goal on a game-high seven shots, six of which were on goal. Senior Liza Welch also made an impact, putting three of her four shots on target, while Di Maio and sophomore Anna Steps each finished with two shots apiece.

The Leopards out-cornered the home side, 10-3, and led in overall shots by a 17-11 margin. Braunewell's effort was the difference, but the Spiders made the most of their chances, turning four of their seven shots on goal into scores.

With the loss, the Maroon and White drop to 0-2 on the young campaign, while Richmond improves to 1-2. Lafayette remains in Virginia through the weekend, battling William & Mary in its next contest on Sunday, set to begin at 12 p.m.