Friday, August 30
St. Louis, Mo. / SLU Field Hockey Complex
1 p.m. CT / 2 p.m. ET
Central Michigan University
(1-0)
4
at
1
Saint Louis
(0-1)
1
2
3
4
F
Central Michigan
1
0
2
1
4
Saint Louis
0
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1
Photo by: Lauren Verellen '26 - @laurenverellen_photography
Field Hockey Delivers Season-Opening Win Over Saint Louis, 4-1
8/30/2024 8:04:00 PM | Field Hockey
Mallory Camryn scored two goals for CMU in first game with Chippewas, Pluciennik, Kaitlyn Bowker score
SAINT LOUIS, Mo. — Central Michigan Field Hockey opened its 2024 slate on the right note on Friday with a season-opening, 4-1 win over Saint Louis at the SLU Field Hockey Complex.
In her first game at CMU, junior Mallory Camryn delivered a pair of goals in the third and fourth quarters to give the Chippewas the go-ahead over the Billikens. The opening goal came from sophomore Cameron Pluciennik in the 11th minute, and CMU's third goal of the game came by senior Kaitlyn Bowker in the third quarter.
"It was a total team effort today," said Head Coach Jennifer Johnstone. "We tried to use every person on our travel roster, that was really exciting, but we used our depth to our advantage today and it allowed us to maintain a high pace of play on a really hot day.
"We had a solid offensive production and defensive production from the team."
Pluciennik's game-opening goal was the result of a penalty corner drawn by Cosima Perleth, who went on to earn the assist on Pluciennik's first career goal.
A split-second pass from Annabelle Cotroneo helped Camryn to her first goal of the season in the second period, just thirty seconds in. Camryn, a transfer from Maine, scored again with 38 seconds left in the game, this time, unassisted.
"Mal is a tremendous player and we're happy she's here with us," said Johnstone of the junior. "She brings an attacking prowess to our forward line and plays very selfless hockey.
"If she finds herself open in front of the cage, she's going to do everything she can to score, she's a great player. Her leadership as a junior and the mentality that she has really sparks a lot of her teammates to take on her mentality and that is so exciting to see."
Bowker, a senior, scored in the third period on a long pass from freshman Violet Barton, her sixth career goal.
"For a senior like Kaitlyn, it's so exciting to open the season with a goal," Johnstone said. "There's a big excitement from everybody that's here about the potential that we have this season, and it's a fun, contagious energy. It's really nice."
Freshman Jenna Billig saw her first career start in goal, where she tallied three saves. Coletta Beeler took over in the cage for the 4th quarter and amassed two saves while allowing no goals.
"Coletta got the start at Michigan State and Jenna came in at the end, and today we just kind of did the opposite," Johnstone said. "Jenna did a really good job, she's been working hard in practice, I think she's getting more confident in her communication and we're really proud of her effort, and Coletta's as well, to come in for the last quarter and not let any goals in. They both did excellent today."
Johnstone, who spearheaded the program in 2022, is now 3-0 in season openers. The Chippewas defeated the Billikens, 2-0, at a neutral site in East Lansing in 2022, and won their 2023 opener against Colgate, 3-2, in Hamilton, N.Y.
The win also denotes the first time the Chippewas have scored at least four goals against a Division I program since 2020 (5-2 at Bellarmine), and the first time in general since 2022 (6-0 at Lindenwood).
CMU will stay in Saint Louis for a neutral site game with Mid-American Conference opponent Bellarmine in a nonleague game on Saturday (2 p.m.). CMU is set to be the home team. The Knights, who finished 3-4 in the MAC in 2023, will play host Saint Louis on Sunday.
"Our goal definitely is to be in that top six for the MAC Tournament and there will be an opportunity where we have to play back-to-back," Johnstone said. "This is good preparation for us, and the fact that we get to play a MAC opponent tomorrow is also really excited for us.
"We did a really good job today of using our bench and our subs, and I imagine we'll do the same tomorrow as it's going to be hot again and the pace of play will be high, but we're looking forward to everything tomorrow."
In her first game at CMU, junior Mallory Camryn delivered a pair of goals in the third and fourth quarters to give the Chippewas the go-ahead over the Billikens. The opening goal came from sophomore Cameron Pluciennik in the 11th minute, and CMU's third goal of the game came by senior Kaitlyn Bowker in the third quarter.
"It was a total team effort today," said Head Coach Jennifer Johnstone. "We tried to use every person on our travel roster, that was really exciting, but we used our depth to our advantage today and it allowed us to maintain a high pace of play on a really hot day.
"We had a solid offensive production and defensive production from the team."
Pluciennik's game-opening goal was the result of a penalty corner drawn by Cosima Perleth, who went on to earn the assist on Pluciennik's first career goal.
A split-second pass from Annabelle Cotroneo helped Camryn to her first goal of the season in the second period, just thirty seconds in. Camryn, a transfer from Maine, scored again with 38 seconds left in the game, this time, unassisted.
"Mal is a tremendous player and we're happy she's here with us," said Johnstone of the junior. "She brings an attacking prowess to our forward line and plays very selfless hockey.
"If she finds herself open in front of the cage, she's going to do everything she can to score, she's a great player. Her leadership as a junior and the mentality that she has really sparks a lot of her teammates to take on her mentality and that is so exciting to see."
Bowker, a senior, scored in the third period on a long pass from freshman Violet Barton, her sixth career goal.
"For a senior like Kaitlyn, it's so exciting to open the season with a goal," Johnstone said. "There's a big excitement from everybody that's here about the potential that we have this season, and it's a fun, contagious energy. It's really nice."
Freshman Jenna Billig saw her first career start in goal, where she tallied three saves. Coletta Beeler took over in the cage for the 4th quarter and amassed two saves while allowing no goals.
"Coletta got the start at Michigan State and Jenna came in at the end, and today we just kind of did the opposite," Johnstone said. "Jenna did a really good job, she's been working hard in practice, I think she's getting more confident in her communication and we're really proud of her effort, and Coletta's as well, to come in for the last quarter and not let any goals in. They both did excellent today."
Johnstone, who spearheaded the program in 2022, is now 3-0 in season openers. The Chippewas defeated the Billikens, 2-0, at a neutral site in East Lansing in 2022, and won their 2023 opener against Colgate, 3-2, in Hamilton, N.Y.
The win also denotes the first time the Chippewas have scored at least four goals against a Division I program since 2020 (5-2 at Bellarmine), and the first time in general since 2022 (6-0 at Lindenwood).
CMU will stay in Saint Louis for a neutral site game with Mid-American Conference opponent Bellarmine in a nonleague game on Saturday (2 p.m.). CMU is set to be the home team. The Knights, who finished 3-4 in the MAC in 2023, will play host Saint Louis on Sunday.
"Our goal definitely is to be in that top six for the MAC Tournament and there will be an opportunity where we have to play back-to-back," Johnstone said. "This is good preparation for us, and the fact that we get to play a MAC opponent tomorrow is also really excited for us.
"We did a really good job today of using our bench and our subs, and I imagine we'll do the same tomorrow as it's going to be hot again and the pace of play will be high, but we're looking forward to everything tomorrow."
Team Stats
CMU
SLU
Goals
4
1
Shots
11
12
Shots on Goal
7
7
Saves
6
3
Corners
5
4
Offsides
0
0
Fouls
0
0
Scoring Plays
Cameron Pluciennik (1)
Assisted By: Cosima Perleth
GOAL by CMU Cameron Pluciennik (FIRST GOAL), Assist by Cosima Perleth, goal number 1 for season.
11:44
Josefina Perez (1)
Assisted By: Olivia Smith
GOAL by SLU Josefina Perez, Assist by Olivia Smith, goal number 1 for season.
23:20
Mallory Camryn (1)
Assisted By: Annabelle Cotroneo
GOAL by CMU Mallory Camryn, Assist by Annabelle Cotroneo, goal number 1 for season.
30:23
Kaitlyn Bowker (1)
Assisted By: Violet Barton
GOAL by CMU Kaitlyn Bowker, Assist by Violet Barton, goal number 1 for season.
40:19
Mallory Camryn (2)
GOAL by CMU Mallory Camryn, goal number 2 for season.
59:22
Game Leaders
Players
Shots
3
SOG
2
Goals
2
Assists
0
Shots
1
SOG
1
Goals
1
Assists
0
Shots
1
SOG
1
Goals
1
Assists
0
Shots
1
SOG
1
Goals
0
Assists
1
Players Mentioned
MF
/ Field Hockey
GK
/ Field Hockey
GK
/ Field HockeyMF
/ Field HockeyF
/ Field HockeyMF
/ Field Hockey
MF
/ Field HockeyF
/ Field Hockey
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