Friday was a monumental afternoon for two members of the Massachusetts field hockey program. One knew of the big day she was having, and the other had no idea about the significance of the Minutewomen’s 3-1 victory against La Salle in Philadelphia.

Sophomore Izzie Delario led UMass to victory with two unassisted goals, doubling her season total in the span of 70 minutes. Her first goal came early in the second half when she dribbled through the majority of La Salle’s defense, juked the goalkeeper and placed the ball in the back right corner of the net.

Later in the second half, Delario sealed the victory for UMass when she beat two defenders and effortlessly scored her second goal in the top left corner of the cage.

Coach Carla Tagliente could not have been more proud of Delario.

“She had an outstanding weekend,” Tagliente said. “She has really been on the rise for us and has had a great past few weeks. She hasn’t shown up in the box score very much, but she’s coming back to form.”

Delario was sidelined with an illness leading up to preseason, and in Tagliente’s eyes has just started to get back to 100 percent.

“It has taken her a bit of time to get back into form, to get her conditioning and strength back, but she had a really great weekend and the game against La Salle has been one of the best I’ve seen her play this year,” Tagliente said.

She added that Delario was crucial in leading the Minutewomen offense.

“She was confident on the ball and generated a lot of attack for us, which is the Izzie we have been expecting all year,” Tagliente said.

Delario was proud of herself as well, but was not expecting a multi-goal performance against the Explorers.

“I haven’t been seeing as much in the goal column this year. I knew that it was going to be a tough game, so I just stepped up and capitalized on the opportunities that were presented to me,” Delario said.

While Delario was shining on the field for the Minutewomen, Tagliente quietly reached a milestone on the sidelines. The win against La Salle marked the 50th of her career as head coach for UMass.

Delario did not even know that Tagliente had won her 50th game until the team was eating at a nearby restaurant.

“We were told after the game, and it is a great accomplishment for coach and for our program as a whole. The last 3-to-4 years of Carla being here, she has really brought up our program,” Delario said. “She is the best coach I’ve ever had.”

Tagliente was pleased to reach the milestone, but was quick to credit her players for putting her in position to reach it.

“I haven’t really put that much thought into it. It is kind of cool, but it is a testament to the groups that we have had here. It is a good thing for the program, but it really goes back to the players and what they have done,” she said.

Matthew Zackman can be reached at [email protected]