BOSTON, Mass. -- Simmons Field Hockey recorded their fourth shutout of the year with a 4-0 victory of the Johnson & Wales Wildcats Saturday afternoon in non-conference action.
Sharks first year Mary Neidhardt (Middlefield, Conn.) opened the scoring at 5:49 into the first half when she collected a ball from in front of Wildcats net and beat Jaclyn Lyons stick side for her sixth of the year.
Simmons kept up the pressure on offense, drawing four corners and posting six shots before sophomore Amy Cronin (Georgetown, Mass.) buried a shot past Lyons off a stellar pass from senior Seneca Martensson (East Longmeadow, Mass.) for a 2-0 lead. With less than four minutes to play in the opening stanza, first year Maddie Koufos (Needham, Mass.) inserted the ball on a Sharks corner and then stayed low for a sweep shot off a pass from Robin Powell (Richmond, Vt.) to increase the lead to three.
The Sharks stayed hungry in the second half, recording a 14-3 shot advantage and a 5-4 advantage in penalty corners. Simmons first year Jenna Gagnon broke through the Johnson & Wales defense and slipped a shot past Lyons in a flurry in front of the Wildcats' net.
Johnson & Wales had their best opportunity off a corner with 15 minutes remaining in the game when Cassandra McClaflin inserted the ball to Amanda Takach, who took a low shot but Simmons keeper Renna Smith (Belfast, Maine) was there for the save.
The Sharks held a 27-5 shot advantage and a 13-5 advantage in penalty corners. Smith picked up her second win of the year making four saves, while Lyons made 16 saves in the loss.
Simmons returns to action on Tuesday, Oct. 1 at Smith College at 4:00 PM.
