The field hockey team lost in overtime for the second straight game, dropping a 5-4 decision to Dartmouth on Saturday. Just four days after a 2-1 loss to Massachusetts, the Bears (1-6, 0-2 Ivy League) traveled to Hanover, N.H., where it nabbed a game-tying goal from Katie Hyland '11 with 54 seconds left in regulation but could not beat the Big Green (1-5, 1-1). The biggest blow came at the end of the first half, when Dartmouth struck for three goals in the final five minutes.
"Losing back to back in overtime is extremely disappointing and frustrating," said Head Coach Tara Harrington '94. "We had a lull near the end of the first half, and Dartmouth really took it to us. We came clawing back in the second half but it just wasn't quite enough to finish off the game with a W for us."
Still, Harrington said that playing close games is a sign of how much the team has grown.
"I think that we've certainly improved in the battling-to-the-end department," she said. "We've gotten a lot tougher and a lot stronger, and we've been fighting in every single game. I think that for us to turn the corner we just have to be more disciplined and more consistent with taking care of the factors during the game that we can easily take care of."
Just 13:16 into the game, Leslie Springmeyer '12 opened the scoring for Bruno on a penalty corner when she took a pass from Hyland.
"I was in the right position, off the far post, and she gave me a good pass," Springmeyer said. "We beat the goalie and it went in. And that was nice, because we scored first, which is always a good sign."
It was just the second time this season that Brown had scored first in a game, following the UMass game.
"That's been a goal for us this year," Harrington said. "The next step is, we've got to score second and score third and score fourth and not let another team come back into the picture."
Dartmouth did just that, beating Brown goalkeeper Lauren Kessler '11 for the tying goal with 4:55 left in the first half. The Big Green tacked on two more goals, 1:43 and 4:17 later, in what Harrington called a defensive meltdown of the backfield and midfield. The Bears needed to rally at halftime, facing a 3-1 deficit.
"We talked about what we needed to do," Harrington said. "It wasn't anything magical that we needed to get us back in that game...it was just taking care of all the little things like our marking and moving the ball and passing, passing with possession, and getting our forwards upfield and drawing attacking corner opportunities, and then converting on those corner opportunities, which we did."
Springmeyer said the Bears were inspired to get those goals back.
"We fought really hard (in the) second half to get it back," she said. "Katie had two amazing goals, and we never gave up, which I think is the most important part."
Brown cut the lead in half on a goal by Tacy Zysk '11 9:37 into the second half, but Dartmouth answered less than eight minutes later to take a 4-2 lead.
Bruno soon pulled Kessler, who had seven saves, and inserted Caroline Washburn '12, who made three saves to hold the Big Green scoreless for the rest of regulation, but time was slipping away for the Bears.
It was then that Hyland stepped up. On a penalty corner with less than six minutes remaining, Springmeyer knocked the ball in and Victoria Sacco '09 stopped it to set up Hyland, who said she unleashed a "straight, hard shot to the corner."
Dartmouth clung to a 4-3 lead until less than a minute remained in regulation, when Hyland struck again.
"We had another corner but the initial shot was blocked, and I got the rebound and just aimed for the goal, and it went in," she said. "It was one of the best feelings, just to be able to do something for the team and send the game into overtime."
That was all the magic the Bears had left. Just 5:04 into overtime, Kelly McHenry's shot found the back of the cage to seal the victory for the Big Green.
It was a bitter loss for the Bears, but one of the positives that came out of it was a strong offensive showing, Hyland said.
"Last year we struggled with scoring, and this year it's a great sign that we're actually putting goals on the board, losing games with four goals on our side," she said. "It's just unfortunate that the other team happened to get more than us."
Harrington was also pleased with the growth of the offense.
"I think that we're starting to attack more as a team, which is something that we've been working on, and use all of our lines to advance the ball down the field," she said.
"(We're) not just getting the ball from our backfield right away to our front line, but really incorporating our midfield as well."
Harrington said that the next step for the Bears will be to focus on maintaining their fundamentals throughout the game without experiencing major lapses. Bruno hosts the Fairfield Stags (3-8) on Wednesday at 4 p.m. on Warner Roof.
"I think we all have the heart and the desire to win, so hopefully we'll be able to execute," Springmeyer said.
