Courtesy of Sam Rub '95
The Yale field hockey team claimed its first two-game winning streak since the start of the season, as they emerged victorious against Dartmouth (4–8, 1–3 Ivy) and Quinnipiac (4–9,1–4 Big East) this weekend.
The weather turned cold, but the Bulldogs heated up the field in Hanover, New Hampshire, on Saturday, defeating the Big Green 4–3 despite a huge shot advantage for Dartmouth. Usually strong on attack, the Big Green’s offense continuously pressured Yale, with three corner plays in the last two minutes alone as they sought a tying goal. The Elis’ defense proved to be sturdy, with goalkeeper Sydney Terroso ’21 making a season-high 11 saves. Sunday’s game against Quinnipiac saw the Bulldogs claim a much more lopsided 3–1 win with clear advantages in both shots and penalty corners.
“My mindset was to do anything I could to keep the ball out of net,” Terroso said. “The defense and I worked in sync. We connected well on the front line and played our game!”
The Bulldogs gained an early lead off a pair of penalty corners in Saturday’s match against Dartmouth. Midfielder Theodora Dillman ’22 and midfielder Bridget Condie ’20 scored in the third and fourth minutes of the game, respectively, to put Yale up a 2–0 immediately into the match.
Dartmouth put up a strong fight, however, finding the back of the net at the 12-minute mark at the hands of forward Gemma Bautista. Forward Gracyn Campbell scored the second goal at 25:43 after a wild rebound scramble following a corner. The tie did not last. Just three minutes later, Yale forward Camille Scheyer ’20 ripped a shot into the top of the net, notching her first goal of the season and bringing Yale back into the lead heading into halftime.
Midfielder Imogen Davies ’21 tallied her team-leading sixth goal at 61:49 by scoring on a rebound that extended the lead to 4–2. Dartmouth responded a minute later, when its top scorer Katie Spanos knocked a bouncing ball into the side of the cage to cut the Big Green’s deficit to one. Dartmouth was not without its chances, outshooting Yale 25–9 and taking 13 penalty corners compared to the Bulldogs’ 5. The Elis held on, however, keeping the Big Green scoreless during the last minutes of the game and emerging victorious in their fourth conference game of the season. This victory marks Yale’s third win in a row against Dartmouth.
“Our entire team was on fire with our connectivity and communication,” forward Anissa Abboud ’21 said. “We really played our very best when it came to stringing passes together. For Dartmouth it really all started with the beginning of the game and how we scored two goals off of corners within the first 10 minutes of the game. Then we brought the intensity of that into the rest of the game.”
Sunday’s home game against Quinnipiac saw the Bulldogs’ first year talent on full display. All five first years saw action in this game, with midfielder Dillman notching two goals and back Katie Pieterse ’22 scoring her first collegiate career goal. Dillman’s first goal came just after the 20-minute mark off a penalty corner, lifting Yale to a 1–0 lead. Quinnipiac forward Brooke Whipkey leveled the affair at 1–1 10 minutes later.
Responding quickly, Yale pulled ahead again when Pieterse knocked the ball into the cage after Quinnipiac blocked Scheyer’s initial shot. The Bulldogs continued to generate offensive opportunities, eventually widening the lead off a second goal by Dillman. Yale won the game 3–1 to propel its season record to a positive 7–6.
This weekend demonstrated Yale’s strong corner play capability, which has played a key role in its recent victories. Those skills will be put to the test in its four remaining games in its season, three of which are conference matches against Penn, Columbia and Brown.
“We capitalized on our chances when we needed to,” Davies said. “The forwards movement and work rate really created a lot of attacking opportunities. [Dartmouth] was a great win for our team, particularly being Ivy.”
The Bulldogs face Penn next Saturday at 12 p.m. on Johnson Field.
Lucy Liu | l.liu@yale.edu .