Ava Seymour, Contributing Photographer

After starting the season 2–0 for the first time in six years, Yale Field Hockey continued their stretch of away games with a match-up against Fairfield University (1–4, 0–0 NEC) on Friday night. 

The Bulldogs scored with a rebound off of the opposing goalie’s pads from senior Lily Ramsey ’25 in the game’s first minute. 

The rest of the game was a defensive masterclass from the Elis, with Fairfield’s having a 10–7 shot advantage throughout the game. Despite the Stags’ 11 penalty corners, the Bulldogs held strong with help from goalie Alexa Pitts ’25, who had her first career shutout. Fairfield’s last chance at scoring came from a corner in the final 15 seconds of the game, but due to the Bulldogs’ tough defense, they sent the ball out of bounds as the clock expired. Ramsey’s goal in the opening 30 seconds remained the only point on the board.

Pitts wrote to the News about the team’s mindset during defensive games. “There definitely wasn’t a mentality switch in the game on Friday,” she wrote. “The mentality is always to play as a team, support each other and play our game.”

This was the fourth straight game against the Stags, which was decided by one goal, but the first in which  Yale came out victorious. This was the first of four games against rival Connecticut teams. The Bulldogs will face Sacred Heart (2–4, 1–0 NEC), Quinnipiac (2–4, 0–0 Big East) and UConn (5–1, 0–0 Big East), ranked 16th, later in the yearly campaign.

Head Coach Melissa Gonzalez wrote to the News about her team’s ability to grow. 

“As the season progresses, I hope we see continued growth in both our attacking and defensive strategies,” Gonzalez wrote. “Our team is incredibly coachable and receptive to feedback, which sets a strong foundation for improvement.”

That Sunday, the undefeated Bulldogs played their first Ivy League matchup of the season against Brown University (1–3, 1–0 Ivy) at home at Yale’s Johnson Field. Yale sought their seventh straight win against the Bears. 

The battle proved to be hot and intense, both in outside temperature — with spectators fanning themselves in the stands — and in fervor on the field. 

Despite multiple shots on goal from each team, the first half remained scoreless. At the start of the third period, about 35 seconds in, Hettie Whittington ’27 received a pass from teammate Poppy Beales ’26 and scored, putting the Elis up by one. Yale found themselves able to maintain this lead going into the fourth quarter, thanks to a save by Pitts.

However, the Bulldogs were not out of the dark just yet. Just five minutes before the end of the regular period, Brown tied the game with a goal by Juliette Meijaard, sending the match into overtime. 

Though both teams put up a strong fight, the first overtime ended with nothing to show for it. As the second overtime rolled around, the question of which team could pull through and secure victory remained.

At 70:53 in the game, a yellow card on Beales awarded a penalty corner for the Bears, giving them the opportunity to score. With a goal by Brown’s Katie McCallum, the Bulldogs took their first loss of the season in a devastatingly hard-fought battle.

Gonzalez wrote to the News about her team’s execution.

“We were impressed by our team’s ability to maintain possession and implement the press,” Gonzalez wrote. “We created quality team opportunities from these two areas. We look forward to building on this performance throughout the remainder of the season.”

The Bulldogs remain at home to face Sacred Heart University on Friday, Sept. 20.