Every loss hurts but when the Red fell to Dartmouth 5-2 yesterday, the loss was tinged with extra sadness.
“I was really upset,” said senior Danielle Dunn. “Field hockey has basically been my life since freshman year. I am so happy to a part of this team and program. It’s sad to see it end.”
The Red finished the season 3-13 and the team was unable to deliver a win for its seniors in the final game of their college career. Dartmouth scored the first four goals of the contest before the Red responded.
Dunn provided all the Red offense, scoring two second half goals, while Dartmouth junior Nina Fulmer recorded two goals of her own.
The Green and the Red traded shots in the first 15 minutes of the half. Both teams had excellent scoring opportunities but neither could capitalize. Dartmouth scored the first goal of the contest in the 19th minute when senior Allison Welch redirected a shot from sophomore Audrey Knutson past senior goaltender Lori Blutinger. The goal was scored on a breakaway following a long offensive possession for the Red.
Less than six minutes later, Dartmouth tallied another goal on a penalty corner. Fulmer corralled the rebound off her own shot and put the ball into the top of the net. The Green did not sit on its lead and closed out the half with another goal. With just over a minute to play, sophomore Addie Downing deflected a shot by classmate Abby Brown into the back of the net.
“We let ourselves down in the first half,” said head coach Donna Hornibrook. “Our game plan was that we wanted to get pressure on their backfield, but our forwards were a little hesitant. We were not disciplined enough with pressure and focus.”
The second half opened much how the first closed — with a Dartmouth goal. Only 46 seconds into the stanza, Welch assisted freshman Katie Hagy who scored the first goal of her career.
Down but not out, the Red mounted a determined stand. Dunn tallied the first Red goal after pressuring the Green into a turnover deep in its own end. Dunn then made a nifty move and fired a shot past the goalie on the short side. The goal came unassisted in the 43rd minute. The Red continued to pressure the Green and had numerous scoring opportunities.
The Red allowed another goal with three minutes to play in regulation on a penalty corner.
Fulmer received a pass from junior Lindsay Gossage and belted a shot into the back of the net for her fourth goal of the season.
Dunn capped off the Red scoring for the day and the season with about two minutes to play. Senior Gina Testa entered the circle from the left side and found Dunn in front of the cage, who slipped the ball past freshman goaltender Ashley Heist. The goal was Dunn’s team-leading eighth of the season — the most a Red player has scored since 2001.
In the game, the Red mustered 15 shots to Dartmouth’s 17, and seven penalty corners to the Green’s eight. Blutinger made seven saves.
“I challenged them in the locker room at halftime,” Hornibrook said. “They came out and had a much better second half. We out-shot them 11-4. Our team has a lot to learn about playing 70 minutes of field hockey. We’ve shown all season we can play with anyone 35 minutes at a time.”
Archived article by James Rich
Sun Staff Writer