New Jersey Athletic Confefence (NJAC) regular season champs once again. The No. 14 ranked Rowan Profs have won five consecutive regular season NJAC titles, extending their reign of dominance on Thursday evening with a, 7-0, win over the William Paterson Pioneers at Coach Richard Wackar Stadium
Bigger than just tonight’s game is that Profs will host a NJAC semi-final game. And if they win that game, they will host the NJAC championship game in Glassboro.
Head coach Michelle Andre was delighted with the win.
“It’s good to have home field advantage for the conference championship,” Andre said. “We’re playing at a high intensity at the end of the season to get us ready for the playoffs.”
Sydney Kowalczyk was the best player on the field tonight. She netted a hattrick in just the first quarter to give the Profs a quick three-goal advantage.
Kowalczyk, the team leader in goals, is also just in her first season.
Andre had some high praise for the freshman.
“She just has a knack to find the back of the goal. She’s really good at getting into spots to get the goal, or even just getting the ball and creating space for her teammates,” Andre said.
Kowalczyk is one of a couple freshmen who join Rowan’s lineage of winning hockey. Even with her performance the team always comes first.
“I can’t do it without my teammates, it’s not an individual effort every goal they set me up,” Kowalczyk said. “I can’t thank them enough.”
She also has her sights set on bigger things than just the regular season crown too.
“We have one goal and that’s to make the NCAA’s and the national championship,” Kowalczyk said.
After the Kowalczyk hat-trick, Ava Thomas added another goal to make the score, 4-0. Then, before the halftime whistle, the Profs added their fifth goal of the day when the senior from Morristown, Katie Meehan, scored her first goal of the season to put the Profs up 5-0.
“I love my teammates, everyone is super supportive and it just feels great to finally get it in the back of the net,” Meehan said.
After the halftime break, the Profs added two more goals thanks to Victoria Tullio, who scored in the third quarter. Then in the fourth quarter, the dagger came from Riley McClelland, who netted her second goal of the season. In regards to the offense the Profs have been unstoppable, scoring 45 goals in their last nine games.
“We have so many different people that can score in so many different ways and you don’t know who’s going to score,” Andre said
Before the Profs celebrate too hard, they have to play the No. 1 team in the country, the Christopher Newport Captains. Even with the toughest team in the nation on their plate, the Profs are not flinching.
“This is it, we’re here, we’re in playoff mode,” Andre said. “We’re playing at a high intensity at the end of the season to get us ready for the playoffs.”
The Profs will play Christopher Newport on Saturday, Oct. 25 at the home of the Captains in Newport News, Va.
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