A strong second-half offensive surge from Boston University proved costly for the Yale field hockey team as the Elis lost 1-0 at Johnson Field Saturday.
With the win, Boston University (5-5) returned to .500. For the Bulldogs (2-6, 0-3 Ivy), it was their second consecutive shutout loss, extending their losing streak to four. After a 5-0 defeat to the University of Connecticut on Oct. 2, in which Yale recorded season lows in shots and penalty corners, the Bulldogs regrouped and brought more players to the front line to spur the offense.
Though Yale was able to keep the game close Saturday, the offense continued to falter, notching only four shots and two penalty corners.
“We totally changed our lineup and formation,” forward Suzanne Anthony ’03 said. “We developed our play a lot better, but we need to figure out how to get more shots off.”
After a dominating first half in which the Bulldogs limited Boston to only two strokes in the circle, Yale emerged from halftime looking sluggish. The Terriers took full advantage, peppering Eli goalie Krissy Nesburg ’04 with 14 shots.
“They regrouped and came out a lot harder in the second,” said Anthony. “They caught us by surprise.”
With 18:54 remaining in the second half, Boston scored on a penalty corner. Celeste Hubbard fed the ball to Dalinda Banuelos, who stroked it past Nesburg.
“It was a decent shot,” Nesburg said. “We were getting lucky on defense. The refs missed a couple of calls that should have gone BU’s way.”
Nesburg continued her double-digit save streak, recording 10 saves against the Terriers. But Nesburg’s efforts between the pipes have not been enough for the Bulldogs.
“It’s extremely frustrating,” Nesburg said. “I really want to run out of the goal and score sometimes.”
The Bulldogs have been unable to fill the holes left by three offensive players who graduated in the spring. Head coach Ainslee Lamb has mixed up the lineup and tried new plays, but the Bulldogs have been unable to execute.
Though the Eli women have been inconsistent on all fronts this season, their most persistent problem is their inability to create an attack. The Bulldogs have not scored a goal in their last 140 minutes of play. Boston player Kara Rossi’s five shots during the game were more than the Bulldogs’ combined total.
“We are a young team and we need to find our niche,” Nesburg said.