The field hockey team had a bittersweet weekend, starting with a win over third-ranked Bowdoin Polar Bears on Saturday. Its Sunday was spoiled, however, when Tufts knocked the Lady Cards out of the first round of the NESCAC tournament, 2-0.
Against Bowdoin, the Cards fell behind early but stormed back with two goals from Molly Adams ’06, winning by a score of 2-1. The victory elevated Wesleyan to fourth place in the NESCAC, giving the team home-field advantage against Tufts.
The game against Bowdoin proved to be a nail biter. Both teams were energized with playoff seeding in limbo. Bowdoin desperately wanted to hold on to third place, which would have allowed them to bypass NESCAC power Middlebury until the second round. The Cardinals had to beat Bowdoin to get a home game in the first round of the playoffs.
“Us, Bowdoin, Williams, and Tufts all had a legitimate shot at taking second,” said co-captain Megan Gauvey-Kern ’05. “The game against Bowdoin was important because it determined if we can get a home game in the playoffs or even take the third seed.”
Early on, both sides had plenty of scoring opportunities. Courtney Tetrault ’07 had one beautiful shot on goal that was deflected off the goalie’s stick five minutes into the game. Six minutes later, Bowdoin missed a close opportunity of its own. Evidently still exhausted from their heartbreaking double overtime loss against Tufts, the Lady Cards allowed Bowdoin to take the early initiative. On a routine defensive play, the Polar Bears pounced on a Cardinal error and put the first point on the board. Wesleyan fought tenaciously to even the score, but Bowdoin’s defense was impenetrable. The first half ended with the Red and Black trailing 1-0.
A rested Bowdoin offense was determined to pad its fragile lead at the start of the second half, but Wesleyan’s all-star defense would not give the Bears another easy goal. It was with six minutes left in regulation that Adams decided it was her turn to carry the offense. Receiving a pass from Jenn Wasserman ’05, Adams skirted between two defenders, and laced a beautiful shot into the corner of the goal to tie the game. With less than two minutes to play, the junior attacker orchestrated the same play from the left side of the field, this time receiving the feed pass from Ashley Cecchinato ’05. This gave the Cardinals a 2-1 victory and sent them a Sunday date with arch-nemesis Tufts.
Unfortunately, the string of close games had taken their toll on the beleaguered Cardinals. Tufts, fired up after narrowly defeating Williams and Wesleyan, came out flat in a lackluster effort against Connecticut College to finish its season. From the opening whistle, it seemed the Jumbos wanted to rectify their season ending flop. Cardinal killers Dana Panzer and Lea Napolitano teamed up to score parrot goals each in the first half. Eighteen minutes into the game Panzer passed to Napolitano on a fast break, and Napolitano fired a bullet into the back of the net. Less than a minute later, Napolitano intercepted a pass to score the second goal.
Although Wesleyan dominated much of the remainder of the game, the Jumbos defense could not be broken, and Wesleyan lost another agonizing game to their Massachusetts rivals.
“It was a good game. Both teams played well,” Wasserman said. “Tufts had two girls [Napolitano and Panzer] who we struggled against in man on man coverage. Although it was a tough way to go out, the team gave a good effort. It was a fun year. We always had fun during practice and we respected our teammates and coaches. The season was going to end at some point anyway.”
The truth is that the Wesleyan field hockey team has much to celebrate, with an overall record of 11-4 record, over 45 goals scored, and five shutouts. They were, without a doubt one of the dominant Cardinal teams. this fall.
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