U.S. Field Hockey Score Huge Upset over Argentina

Courtesy of U.S. Field Hockey

Local hockey players, Rachel Dawson, Katie Reinprecht, and Jackie Briggs were instrumental in the United States Field Hockey Team striking a huge upset over medal-favorite Argentina in pool play, 2-1.

Briggs, from Robesonia, PA, was a stalwart in goal, only allowing one late goal to one of the premier offenses in the world. Despite her great performance, the America couldn’t punctuate on a myriad of scoring opportunities and had the game scoreless going into the second half.

That’s where Perkasie native Katie Reinprecht came in, firing a shot that deflected off of Argentinian goalkeeper Belen Succi to open up the scoring. Rachel Dawson, from Berlin, NJ, extended the score to 2-0 when she flicked a shot off of teammate Michelle Kasold, past Succi. The lead would be just enough, after Argentina would add a goal later on in the match.

Lauren Crandall of Doylestown, PA, the captain of the team, also had a big match, helping Briggs on the defensive end, helping stuff the Argentineans as well. Her efforts were key in shutting them down. Argentina is ranked number two in the world this year by the International Hockey Federation, and is expected to contend for the medals. With the United States ranked 28^th in the world, the victory came as a big surprise.

The United States will continue play in Group B, when they take on number one ranked Australia on August 8^th. If they are able to get an upset there, it will truly set them up for a Cinderella run through the tournament. The United States women did win the gold at the Pan-Am games in 2015.