Yale field hockey once again finished the weekend without earning a win, but the team remained positive as its play continues to improve.
Yale (1–7, 0–2 Ivy) faced league rival Princeton (3–5, 2–0) on Sept. 27 and Stanford (10–1, 1–0 NorPac) on Sept. 28, with both games ending in losses for the Bulldogs.
“These teams were both big challenges for their own individual reasons,” captain Nicole Wells ’16 said. “[The Tigers are] always a tough, high-emotion and intense-energy game because they are in our league and are always sound in their field hockey play. Stanford came onto our field as a top 10 team with a great season record.”
In the game against Princeton, the squad entered halftime tied with the Tigers, as midfielder Carol Middough ’18 erased Princeton’s 1–0 lead with an unassisted goal just 3:52 after Princeton’s first score. Coming off the half, Princeton went on to score an additional three goals, and the game ended with a final score of 4–1.
The next day, the squad faced then-No. 9 Stanford, who shut out the Elis with a score of 3–0.
“It’s always a fun opportunity to go up against strong teams,” forward Jessie Accurso ’15 said. “It’s an awesome opportunity to be able to compete with teams at a high level. Playing teams like Princeton and Stanford is always a good learning experience for us.”
Accurso added that she felt good about the forward progress of the team, which has been a trend as the season has progressed.
Players interviewed also said that while it is disappointing that the team’s record does not reflect this progress, they remain positive about the season.
“I knew we had to attack the weekend with a high intensity and really trust in our conditioning and strength to play our best,” back Noelle Villa ’16 said. “It’s what we demand of ourselves at practice, and we had to maintain that both Saturday and Sunday.”
According to players, maintaining that high level of physical and mental work throughout a weekend with have multiple games can be a challenge as well, but that the squad is prepared for these sorts of tough weekends.
This upcoming weekend, the team will only be facing one opponent: the current Ivy League leader, Cornell.
“I’m ready to focus on the next game,” Villa said. “Each weekend so far has been another step forward, another learning opportunity. Now it’s time to capitalize.”
Villa also added that the players’ commitment to this team and to each other is a key tenet to the team’s positive chemistry and is emphasized in every practice.
As the team practices this week, the players will have the game plan and hopes for a win this weekend in mind.
“With our team it’s really an overall focus on the game plan that allows us to be successful,” Accurso said. “We’ll be out on Johnson Field this week working hard to grow from last weekend and prepare for Cornell.”
The team will travel to New York to face the Big Red on Saturday.