COLLEGEVILLE, Pa. – The Haverford College field hockey team (7-7, 3-4 CC) dropped a Centennial Conference match to No. 18 Ursinus (10-4, 6-2 CC) by a score of 4-1 at Eleanor Frost Snell Alumnae Field on Wednesday evening.
Just under five minutes into the game, the Bears struck first off a penalty corner. Following a service to the top of the circle, Maeve Montgomery rifled a shot toward the cage. The blistering attempt deflected off Haverford keeper Mary Smith and rolled in, giving the hosts a 1-0 lead.
However, just over a minute later, the Fords responded. Off a penalty corner of their own, Naomi York received a pass at the top of the circle and played the ball to the near post. Rachel Marlin poked it into the air, and as it floated toward the far post, Erica Pardón let it bounce and then swung her stick like a baseball bat, batting the ball out of midair into the back of the cage to level the game at 1-1.
The tale of penalty corners continued as Ursinus found their second goal through another set piece in the second quarter. After a pass toward the top of the circle, Montgomery rocketed a shot that was kicked away by Smith. However, the deflection went to Lauren Sieczkowski, who placed her shot past Smith into the cage, reclaiming the lead for the hosts, 2-1.
Ursinus' third goal came from open play, with Mary Lauren Franz finding the back of the cage. Dribbling the ball at an angle into the circle, Franz made her way toward the near post before chipping a shot up and over Smith to extend Ursinus' lead to 3-1.
With 4:14 remaining in the third quarter, the Bears tacked on their fourth goal. Following a threatening pass from Lauren Habakus, Marie Brainard poked a shot past a pressuring Smith and into the cage, increasing Ursinus' advantage to 4-1.
A quiet fourth quarter sealed the deal for the Bears, as they claimed a 4-1 victory over the Fords. In a game where Ursinus outshot Haverford 19-5, Smith made eight dazzling saves to keep the Fords in contention.
Pardón and Louisa Coughlin each had shots on frame for the Fords, who tallied five total shots and five penalty corners.
Haverford will return home for their final regular season home matchup of the year on Saturday, October 26, when they host McDaniel. The game is set for 1 p.m., and a pregame ceremony will honor the seniors of the Haverford field hockey team.
