PHILADELPHIA- The La Salle field hockey team fell in a hard-fought battle against Appalachian State on Friday, August 25 at Hank DeVincent Field in the season opener.
 
La Salle held Appalachian State down for the opening 35 minutes of play, as the defense limited the Mountineers to just two shots on goal in the first half. Senior Jess Hoffman was thwarted twice in her attempts on goal by Mountineer keeper Rachel Gaines in the opening half.
 
After the scoreless first half, with both teams hungry for a goal, the Mountineers roared ahead with a pair of back-to-back goals three minutes into the second half.
 
The Explorers were never able to recover from the two-goal setback, despite firing back with a goal of their own. Rialee Allen earned her first collegiate goal after accepting a pass from Eileen Dzwill off a corner play ten minutes into the second half.
 
Despite a pair of attempts on goal from Allen, the Explorers were stopped as Appalachian State netted an insurance goal with fifteen minutes left to play.
 
In goal, Emma Provost made five saves in her first appearance for the Blue and Gold.
 
La Salle will return to the turf on Sunday, when the team hosts LIU Brooklyn at Hank DeVincent Field at 12:00 p.m.