BRIGHTON, Mass. – Simmons field hockey (7-2, 6-2 GNAC) suffered its second loss of the season falling to Lasell University, 2-1, in a tight Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) battle on Saturday morning.
While possession favored the Lasers, the majority of the first quarter was played towards the midfield thanks to outstanding defense by the Sharks. However late in the quarter Lasell finally broke up the scoreless ball game, scoring off a penalty corner. Senior Sheridan Blaha found the back of the cage in the fourth.
The Laser lead did not last for very long. Sixteen second later, the Sharks were able to find a breakdown in the Laser defense with junior Anna Tedeschi scoring the equalizer, whipping a shot past Lasell goalkeeper Courtney Tello.
With under five minutes remaining in the period, the Lasers re-gained the lead on a goal by Lily Stark to take the 2-1 advantage heading into the second quarter. Simmons outshot Lasell, 3-0, in the second, but were unable to get the ball past Tello as the Lasers took a 2-1 lead into the break.
Despite trailing by a goal as the second half began, the Sharks continued to minimize the damage with outstanding defense. Junior Alison Michalik made a couple of key defensive plays to anchor the defense, while first-year Katy Paveglio came up with a big defensive save late in the contest.
Simmons saw its best opportunity to the tie contest again at the beginning of the fourth after earning a penalty corner. However, junior Sydney Gonyea's shot was saved by Tello. They did not give up and continued to pepper the Lasers' goalkeeper, but Lasell was able to hang on for the win.
SIMMONS HIGHLIGHTS
- Junior Anna Tedeschi registered her 13th goal of the season scoring the equalizer in the fifth minute.
- First-year goalkeeper Haley Bright recorded seven saves in the loss.
UP NEXT
Simmons return to the field on Tuesday, October 3 when they host non-conference Fitchburg State University at 5 p.m.