Field Hockey: Second Half Onslaught Gives BU 9-0 Win

BOSTON — Last year, Boston University needed two saves from Cammy Jensen to preserve a 9-0 shutout of the winless Colgate Raiders. This time, Jensen and Kathleen Keegan weren’t needed on a single occasion; the offense did all the heavy lifting.

No. 9 Boston University extended their program-best start to 7-0 with their first Patriot League win of the season. Colgate fell to 1-6 (0-1 PL); they will visit Brown University tomorrow. Coach Sally Starr’s squad is done for the week, resting until next Friday’s road game against Lafayette.

Colgate opened up the first half on offense, and was awarded a penalty corner in the third minute of action. That would be all for the Raiders’ offense — they finished the half with just one shot.

BU, not for a lack of effort, went into the half in a scoreless deadlock. They failed to convert on seven penalty corners conceded by the Raider defense. Junior keeper Maria Krull stopped 12 shots in the first 35, and her first 14 shots faced.

Finally, on the team’s 22nd shot, the Terriers took the lead for good. Ally Hammel inserted on a penalty corner for Hester Van der Laan. Van der Laan returned the pass, sending Krull sliding across the net front. Hammel intelligently spotted Allie Dogget positioned at the far post, and sent the ball to her outstrecthed stick for the tap-in.

The assist marked the first of six points — a career-high — for the senior Back. Hammel scored twice off penalty corners for BU goals two and four, then assisted on Taylor Blood’s penalty corner goal (number five for BU).

Allie Renzi followed up and tallied her third goal of the season, stickhandling into the circle around a sprawled out Krull and sliding in Terrier goal number three with the reverse stick shot.

Hammel did not stop there. Her takeaway and quick pass up for Van der Laan led directly to a two-on-zero for Madeline McClain and Grace Boston. Krull overcommitted to McClain while Boston assumed the position at the back post.

McClain assisted on the next two BU goals, one from Sara Martineau and another from Amanda Cassera. Cassera’s goal keeps her on top of the team leaderboard with seven goals.

Then, with time winding down, the Terriers were gifted possession again. Van der Laan played the give-and-go with Martineau, diving with an outstretched stick to tap in the ninth and final BU goal with a single tick left on the clock.

The final three minutes featured a goal per minute ratio as Colgate was visibly defeated both physically and mentally. BU, though, played to the whistle and improved on their goal differential, which now reads 26-9.

BU’s next opponent, Lafayette, enters this week with a 5-1 record after defeating Towson 2-0 today. The Leapords will face the Hofstra Pride in Hempstead, N.Y this upcoming Monday before that campus shuts down for the Presidential Debate the following week.