With the way the defense is playing, the Northeastern field hockey team doesn't need much offense in order to win. On Wednesday night, two goals was more than enough as the Huskies won their second consecutive game with a 2-0 victory over Harvard at Jordan Field in Cambridge, Mass.
Northeastern put pressure on the Crimson early, taking the game's first penalty corner at the 4:32 mark. After the original shot of sophomore Ashley Bascetta was blocked, senior co-captain Whitney Shean took the ball from a sharp angle and fired a ball just off the near post. The captain was everywhere for NU early on, firing a shot that just flew over the cage and then getting a point-blank shot saved by Harvard goaltender Kelly Knoche.
Midway through the period, junior assistant captain Ashley D'Ambra had two golden chances to get the Huskies on the board, but she could not corral two separate passes that sped across the circle with no Crimson players nearby.
The Huskies finally got on the board at the 31:18 mark after the Huskies took a penalty corner. Freshman Suzanne Hazelzet, the reigning CAA Rookie of the Week, passed the ball from the top of the circle to sophomore Ashley Bascetta, who turned and fired the ball past Knoche to give the Huskies a 1-0 lead heading into halftime. For Bascetta, her team-leading sixth tally of the season was her first since she scored two goals against Holy Cross on Sept. 10.
Much like the first half, Northeastern came out strong in the second half and scored a quick second goal. Less than four minutes into the half, Shean broke away from her defender and drove towards the left post. With the sole remaining defender committed to Shean, she threaded a pass across the goal mouth to junior assistant captain Ashley Webber, who dove to direct Shean's pass into a wide open net.
Harvard attempted to up the pressure in the second half, but the team was unable to penetrate the rock-solid Husky defense; Junior goaltender Liz Centofanti earned the win for Northeastern without having to make a save. Knoche made three saves for Harvard in a losing effort.
With the team's record back up to .500, the team has one more home game before the Huskies embark on a crucial five-game road trip. The team will look to return to .500 in conference play and get over .500 overall for the first time since the first game of the season on Friday afternoon when the team hosts the Drexel Dragons at Sweeney Field beginning at 2 p.m.
Field Hockey Box Score (Final)
2006 Northeastern Field Hockey
Northeastern vs Harvard (Oct 04, 2006 at Cambridge, Mass.)
Northeastern (6-6) vs. Goals by period 1 2 Tot
Harvard (0-10) -------------------------------
Date: Oct 04, 2006 Attendance: 120 Northeastern........ 1 1 - 2
Weather: Clear, mild Harvard............. 0 0 - 0
Northeastern Harvard
Pos # Player Sh SOG G A DS Pos # Player Sh SOG G A DS
--------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------
G 33 Centofanti, Liz..... - - - - - G 19 Knoche, Kelly....... - - - - -
F 5 Webber, Ashley...... 2 2 1 - - M 3 Harpstead, Abbie.... 1 - - - -
M 7 Bascetta, Ashley.... 2 1 1 - - B 4 Polet, Francine..... 1 - - - -
M 10 Eckhoff, Sarah...... - - - - - B 5 Ziomek, Audrey...... - - - - -
B 11 Hazelzet, Suzanne... - - - 1 - M 7 Berglund, Jana...... - - - - -
F 13 Casper, Stephanie... 1 1 - - - F 14 Romanelli, Kayla.... - - - - -
M 17 D'Ambra, Ashley..... 1 - - - - F 16 Fuller, Gretchen.... - - - - -
M 21 Hewlett, Montana.... - - - - - F 17 Brown, Aline........ - - - - -
F 24 Shean, Whitney...... 4 1 - 1 - B 18 DeAngelis, Jennifer. - - - - -
B 26 Earley, Joy......... - - - - - B 20 Shapiro, Devon...... 2 - - - -
B 27 Troxel, Megan....... - - - - - M 23 Goodman-Bacon, Eliz. - - - - -
---------- Substitutes ---------- ---------- Substitutes ----------
16 Wilkes, Jillian..... - - - - - 2 Jafar, Tami......... - - - - -
20 Hoyer, Harriet...... - - - - - 6 Calvert, Annie...... - - - - -
25 Wilkes, Rachel...... - - - - - 9 Ardery, Annie....... - - - - -
Totals.............. 10 5 2 2 0 25 Sobek-Rosnick, Tamar - - - - -
Totals.............. 4 0 0 0 0
Northeastern Harvard
# Player MIN GA Saves # Player MIN GA Saves
--------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------
33 Centofanti, Liz..... 70:00 0 0 19 Knoche, Kelly....... 70:00 2 3
Shots by period 1 2 Tot Saves by period 1 2 Tot
------------------------------- -------------------------------
Northeastern........ 6 4 - 10 Northeastern........ 0 0 - 0
Harvard............. 1 3 - 4 Harvard............. 1 2 - 3
Penalty corners 1 2 Tot
-------------------------------
Northeastern........ 3 1 - 4
Harvard............. 1 2 - 3
SCORING SUMMARY:
GOAL Time Team Goal Scorer Assists Description
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. 31:18 NU Bascetta, Ashley (6) Hazelzet, Suzanne After penalty corner
2. 38:43 NU Webber, Ashley (3) Shean, Whitney Pass behind the goalie and deflected in
PLAYER CARDS:
Officials: Barbara Carreiro; Ruth DeBesse; Timekeeper: Leslie Moore; Scorer: Casey Hart;
Offsides: Northeastern 0, Harvard 0
