In eighth grade, Beth Riley traded her soccer goal for a field hockey cage after her friends volunteered her for the position.
She’s been there ever since.
The senior, now in her fourth year as Michigan’s last line of defense, is a calming influence on her teammates. Always even-keeled and never panicky, Riley consistently keeps the Wolverines in games.
She also tends to shut down other teams’ attacks. In 70 total collegiate games, Riley has logged 15 shutouts, including a recent 1-0 nail-biter against Louisville.
“You know she’s going to get it, and if it gets through, it’s not like she freaks out like a lot of other goalies,” said freshman Kelly Fitzpatrick, who played with Riley on the Palmyra Area High School field hockey team in Palmyra, Pa. “She just regains her (composure) and does an awesome job the rest of the game.”
Fitzpatrick also noted that Riley controls the ball better than other goalies. In addition to kicking or swatting the ball away from the goal, Riley likes to direct it to one of her teammates in the backfield, setting up the next attack.
But Riley directs more than the ball. In her years at Michigan, she has developed into an expert manager of her defenders, placing them exactly where they need to be in front of her cage.
“In a Division I program, as a goalkeeper, you’re the last line of defense, and if somebody is not on their mark or the proper line, that’s (Riley’s) responsibility,” Michigan coach Nancy Cox said.
Cox described Riley as a “rock” the Wolverines can always depend on. Whether Michigan is in a blowout or a tight game, winning or losing, the goalkeeper plays at the same exceptional level.
Riley has unshakable confidence in her team and her own abilities. This allows her to keep her composure even during tough times like the rough start Michigan experienced this season, in which it lost its first four games.
“You just have to stay motivated and do what you know you can do,” Riley said. “If we’re struggling, if they’re having a lot of fast breaks, maybe you need to pull a defender back a little bit, give them more space. You just need to make adjustments and something will happen.”
Riley’s sparkling stats speak for themselves about what can happen.
The Palmyra native was named Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week after a weekend in which she notched wins against Ball State and Louisville. Her career record is 51-19, and her career goals-against average is a superb 1.49 per game.
But for Riley, those statistics and individual achievements come in a distant second to her team’s accomplishments.
“I hope to match our Big Ten Tournament win (from last season) and hopefully this year we’ll go back to the Final Four,” Riley said. “I remember freshman year how much fun that was, and just what type of a rush I felt when we played Wake Forest in that semifinal game. I just hope that we can do that, and that other stuff will come as it may.”
Riley will face her next test this Friday when the suddenly red-hot Wolverines take on No. 9 Penn State. Michigan has won three straight, including five of the last six games.