Ranchi Royals crush Bengal Tigers 5-0 in Women''s HIL

Ranchi, Dec 30 (PTI) Lucina von der Heyde struck a brace as Ranchi Royals registered a comfortable 5-0 victory over Shrachi Bengal Tigers in their second Women's Hockey India League match, here on Tuesday.

Apart from Von der Heyde (33', 57'), Royals scored through Hannah Cotter (10'), Beauty Dungdung (14') and Sangita Kumari (44').

Ranchi Royals started the match on a strong note, controlling possession and creating an array of chances.

In the first half, the Royals had made 17 circle entries asserting their dominance in attack.

In the fifth minute, the Ranchi outfit won the first penalty corner of the evening but couldn't score as Sabine Plonissen's shot was deflected away by the first rusher.

However, in the 10th, Royals scored the opening goal thanks to New Zealand's Cotter (10').

Sakshi Rana played a good pass into the circle from the left flank as the ball fell to Cotter after a deflection and she slotted it into the net.

In the 14th minute, Neha won another penalty corner for Ranchi Royals, which was successfully converted by the home side.

Von der Heyde took the initial shot that was stopped by a defender, but Dungdung (14') showed great determination to pounce on the rebound and slot the ball into the goal, extending their lead to two goals.

The trend followed in the second quarter as the Royals continued to operate the ball well on the flanks and create good chances. But Bengal Tigers were resilient in their defence.

In the opening minutes of the third quarter, Ranchi Royals found the net again to increase their advantage. Von der Heyde (33') dribbled from the left flank to push the ball ahead and played it to Rutuja Dadaso Pisal on the baseline, who set the ball perfectly for the Argentine again as her shot took a deflection and went into the goal.

Ranchi Royals struck again in the 44th minute. Maria Sofia Darnay did well to find Sangita (44') in front of goal from the left flank as she slapped the ball into the net with ease in front of her home crowd.

With just four minutes left, the Royals won yet another penalty corner and converted the chance, courtesy of a well-placed shot from Von der Heyde (57’). PTI UNG DDV