Field Hockey Continues 9-0 Streak (But You Already Knew That)

 

The Panthers added two wins to their record this week, putting them at 9-0 for the season. 

On Wednesday, Sept. 26, Middlebury travelled to Saratoga Springs, N.Y. to face the Skidmore Thoroughbreds on their home turf. Skidmore was the first to strike, capitalizing on a penalty corner to score the only goal of the first half at 22:25. But the Panthers came back strong in the second half, marking five consecutive goals to finish with a decisive 5-1 victory. Molly Freeman ’19, Emma Johns ’20, Danielle Brown ’21, Grace Jennings ’20, and Erin Hogan ’21 (her career first) all contributed to the goal-scoring. Overall, Middlebury controlled the game in shots on goal (25-1) and led penalty corners (16-1). 

The game on Saturday, Sept. 29 took place all the way in Waterville, Maine against the Colby Mules. Once again, the Panthers overcame a 0-1 deficit at halftime to come out with a 4-1 win. This time, goals were scored by Marissa Baker ’20, Julia Richards ’20, Erin Nicholas ’21, and Danielle Brown ’21. Behind all the goal-scoring, the team worked together to dig deep and execute their game plan. “Last week’s games definitely tested our team and I believe that we grew a lot as a result of that,” said senior captain Amanda Bozorgi. 

“Each game, we learn how to use our depth as a team more effectively,” said fellow senior captain and goalkeeper Meg Collins. “In terms of our lineup, we’re bringing players into different positions that better match their individual skillsets.”

As for that impressive 9-0 winning streak, the team is using it as motivation to stay focused on what’s ahead. “It feels great to have such a strong first half of the regular season, but combined with coming off such a successful season last year it definitely has teams motivated to beat us,” said Collins. “So we just have to work harder every day in practice to continue to improve our game.”

Next up, the Panthers take on Tufts, also undefeated and ranked second in the NESCAC, at home on Saturday at 1:00 p.m. “We’re coming into this week with some things that we need to work on,” said Bozorgi. “But this team is so deep and so adaptable, I have nothing but high aspirations for the rest of our season.”