Field Hockey: A Loss and a Win

This past week, the Smith College field hockey team played against Manhattanville College on Sept. 7 and against Bay Path College on Sept. 8 in the Betty Richey Tournament hosted by Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, NY. After the 3-1 loss to Manhattanville College, Smith played against Bay Path, which had lost against Vassar, in the consolation game, and more than made up for the previous loss by defeating the team 11-0 in a glorious win.  

The loss to Manhattanville College brought Smith down to 0-2. Neither team scored in the first half of the game, as both goalies defended fiercely. Smith’s goalie Savannah Lawson ’14 made six saves while Manhattanville’s goalie Amy Hilton made four. Lawson defended the goal particularly well while stopping back-to-back attempts to score by Amanda DeChent in a three-minute span, and once again saving Kayala Meehan’s attempt to score two minutes later. The Valiants scored just seven minutes into the second half. Soon after, Forward and Midfielder Kristen Estes ’15 scored her fourth goal in two games and her first career hat trick at the 49:04 mark, making the scores even. Four minutes later, DeChent scored, giving the Valiants a lead. At the end of the game, Lawson had saved a total of 10 goals, while Hilton saved five from Smith. 

Captain Allie Stein ’14 played a great game against Bay Path College, matching her record of six goals in a game and 13 points that she set last year. An unassisted goal by Stein just 2:29 into the game was followed by her putting a home pass from Forward Alexa DeJesus ’14 12 minutes later and less than a minute after that, helping Forward Sydney Burns ’14 score her first goal of the season. Captain Sophie Demuvnck ’13 scored at the 24:16 mark, taking the score to 4-0. Stein continued to score, and with goals from Forward Sara Mercier ’15, Midfielder Jenny Estes ’15 and DeJesus, the Pioneer’s lead became greater and victory came closer. Lawson’s one save for Smith prevented Bay Path from scoring even a goal against the Pioneers. At the end of the game, Stein and J. Estes were added to the All-Tournament team. As Smith won the consolation game, the team was taken to 1-2 while Bay Path fell down to 0-3. 

Smith’s first home game of the season will take place on Sept. 11 at 4:30 p.m. against Elms College, while Bay Path will play Roger Williams on Sept. 12 at 3:30 p.m.