Field Hockey: Underdog Terriers trounce No. 23 Maine
By Alexa Podalsky
The Boston University field hockey team (8-7, 4-1 PL) was put to the test on Tuesday night as the Terriers took on the No. 23 University of Maine Black Bears (11-4, 5-0 AE). Despite being the underdogs heading into the game, BU dominated with a 5-2 win a week after clinching a playoff berth.
The Black Bears headed into the game one win off tying their longest win streak in program history of 11 games.
Within the first five minutes of the game, the Terriers were dominating offensively after attempting four shots on goal and receiving a penalty corner from junior midfielder Thalia Steenssens. All four shots within that period were saved by fifth-year goalkeeper Mia Borley.
BU was able to attempt another shot and receive three more penalty corners before Maine could make a major offensive play. By the end of the first period, the Terriers held the Black Bears to only two shots, which was a precursor to Maine’s scoring struggles for the remainder of the contest.
The first goal of the game was scored at the 17:55 mark after a penalty corner from Steenssens led to sophomore forward Payton Anderson’s fifth goal of the season. Maine’s attempts to push back were unsuccessful after all three shots were saved by senior goalkeeper Caroline Kelly.
Right before the end of the first half, Steenssens received another penalty corner which assisted Payton to score the second goal of the game. The Terriers went into the half with more shots than Maine and kept the Black Bears from receiving any penalty corners.
At the start of the second half, Maine came out stronger than in the previous periods. Senior forward Julia Ross received the first two penalty corners for Maine but proved to be unsuccessful in getting past Kelly.
At the 37:37 mark, junior forward Tess Csejka scored the third goal of the game and her eighth goal of the season. BU continued to hold possession throughout the quarter, which led to another penalty corner given to freshman midfielder Megan Wetzel and a goal from Csjeka.
In the final minute of the third quarter, the Black Bears made a drive for the goal. Junior midfielder Tereza Holubcova received a penalty corner that led to fifth-year forward Chloe Walton scoring Maine’s first goal of the game.
Maine continued their offensive push into the fourth quarter with a shot 45 seconds into the period followed by another penalty corner from Holubcova. The Black Bears’ second goal of the game was scored by junior back Poppy Lambert, marking her 17th goal of the season.
Maine’s attempts to score again didn’t come to fruition after each of their six other attempted shots were saved by Kelly. Maine received two more shots and a green card on junior midfielder Bhreagh Kennedy before BU made the last offensive play of the game.
In the final minutes of the match, the Terriers attempted shots from Anderson and freshman forward Amalia Preece, along with two more penalty corners from Steenssens. At the 58:43 mark, Anderson scored the final goal of the game, bringing the score to 5-2.
The Terriers move on to play the No. 21 Boston College Eagles on October 23 at 1 p.m. at the Field Hockey Complex in Newton, Massachusetts.