Boston College field hockey outshot No. 1 North Carolina—the highest-scoring team in the country—on Friday night, but only found the back of the cage once. The lone goal wasn’t nearly enough to keep pace with the Tar Heels, and, as a result, BC suffered a 4-1 loss. On Sunday afternoon, however, finishing came easily to head coach Kelly Doton’s team. Six different Eagles etched their name in the scorecard for the third time this season, and BC returned to win column with a 6-1 victory over Massachusetts.
Just like against UNC, Lucy Lytle kicked off the match by scoring the game-opening goal—only this time, she didn’t waste a single minute of play. In fact, just 25 seconds into the contest, the senior received a pass from Brooke Matherson atop the circle and flung a shot past Minutewomen (7-9, 5-2 Atlantic 10) goalkeeper Johanna von dem Borne.
But the New England bout wasn’t entirely one sided—at least in the early going. UMass racked up eight shots in the first period of play, just as many as the top-ranked Tar Heels tallied on Friday night. Luckily for the No. 12 Eagles (9-5, 2-3 Atlantic Coast), Joanna Kennedy was on her game.
After replacing Sarah Dwyer in the back half of the second period against UNC, the freshman started her second career game on Sunday. Quite simply, she made the most of the opportunity. Kennedy notched seven saves and staged a shutout throughout the first 63 minutes of regulation. With a one-goal lead on its hands, BC peppered UMass with shots—eventually, the persistence paid off.
Three minutes before halftime, Frederique Haverhals capitalized on a corner, burying the Eagles’ second goal of the day, courtesy of a Brigid Wood assist. The senior’s shot soared pass a number of Minutewomen and landed in the back of the cage, giving BC a bit of a cushion heading into intermission.
The Eagles began the second half the same way they started the first. Three minutes in, Elizabeth Warner got the best of von dem Borne at the doorstep of the net, tapping the ball into the cage for her fifth goal of the year. Right on cue, UMass pressed the pause button on BC’s scoring spurt, which ultimately resumed about 15 minutes later.
Once again, the Eagles scored off a corner: Haverhals delivered a pass to Fusine Govaert, and the sophomore cashed in for her first goal in practically a month. With less than 20 minutes remaining, the Minutewomen found themselves staring at a four-score deficit. In due time, though, UMass spoiled Kennedy’s blanking, thanks to a Lucy Cooper penalty stroke.
If anything, the Minutewomen scoring play added fuel to the fire for BC. The Eagles responded with two goals in the span of three minutes and 13 seconds. Sky Caron restored BC’s four-score lead with a reverse tip-in. Then, soon after, Elizabeth Dennehy tacked on the Eagles’ sixth and final goal of the afternoon off yet another corner.
When all was said and done, BC finished with 10 corners to UMass’ two, partially why the Eagles created as much separation as they did. But even without them, BC’s offense was clearly superior. The Eagles may have split the weekend, but, in doing so, they outshot their opponents a combined, 32-17. If BC—a team that was shut out in two of its final three games last season—is going to make any noise down the stretch, it’ll have to play like it did this weekend: fast and aggressive.
Featured Image by Jonathan Ye / Heights Staff
