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HOUGHTON, N.Y. -- Visiting Nazareth scored twice midway through the second half to trim Houghton's three-goal lead, however, the Highlanders held off the Golden Flyers' rally in the final 15 minutes of action to defeat Nazareth 3-2 in an Empire 8 field hockey game on Wednesday afternoon. Seniors Kailee O'Hara and Lindsey Smith scored in a span of 2:43 for the Golden Flyers.

Following the loss, Nazareth drops to 1-5 overall and 0-3 in conference contests. With the victory, Houghton improves to 4-1 overall and 2-1 in Empire 8 games.

After over 20 minutes of scoreless action, the Highlanders tallied two goals in a span of 2:23. Rachel Stefanski ignited the run with an unassisted goal with just over 11 minutes to play in the first half. Nazareth goalie Shannon Winney made an initial save on Stefanski's shot, but Stefanski collected her rebound and slid a second shot into the Golden Flyers' goal. Minutes later, Stefanski set
up Rebekah Adler's goal.

The momentum remained with Houghton to start the second half as Ashley Engle extended the Highlanders' lead to three goals only 37 seconds into the second half.

With 14:07 remaining in regulation, O'Hara scored the Golden Flyers' first goal after receiving a pass from junior Jordan Ritchie. Less than three minutes later, freshman Cathy Stahl played a penalty corner to Smith who scored and cut Nazareth's deficit to one goal. It was O'Hara's team-leading third goal of the season, while Smith's goal was her second of the season.

Following the two-goal surge, Houghton's defense tightened and thwarted the Golden Flyers' rally. The Highlanders held Nazareth without a shot or a corner for the final 11:24 of the game.

Winney finished with a game-high four saves for the Golden Flyers. Hillery Duman totaled two saves in net for Houghton.

The Highlanders finished with an 11-6 advantage in total shots, including a 7-6 edge in shots on goal. Smith and O'Hara led the Golden Flyers with three shots and two shots, respectively. Nazareth finished with a 9-8 advantage in penalty corner opportunities.

The Golden Flyers host Utica on Saturday afternoon in Empire 8 contest at 1 p.m.