Volume CXXXII, Number 3 September 27, 2002 f

Field Hockey works overtime for victory
ALLIE YANIKOSKI
STAFF WRITER

Britney Carr '04 eyes the ball with intent concentration during a practice at Ryan Field. (Karsten Moran, Bowdoin Orient)

After the normal 70 minutes of game time plus 30 minutes of overtime, the Bowdoin Field Hockey team exuberantly returned home after beating last year's NESCAC champion, Williams, 1-0 on September 21.
"We definitely used the fact that we lost to [Williams] so closely last season in the NESCAC semifinals as an extra incentive to play our hardest," said senior co-captain Jackie Templeton. "They ended our season last year, so we deserved to get them back."

Determined not to allow Williams to score, the Polar Bears altered their customary lineup to add a fourth defensive player, leaving only two forwards.

"The defensive effort of the whole team was very impressive," said Sarah Laverty, senior co-captain. She continued, "[the halfbacks] all had outstanding games, successfully shutting out one of the most dangerous offenses in our league."

Junior goalkeeper Gillian McDonald withstood an offensive barrage that included 25 shots on goal by the Williams offense as well as all three of the penalty strokes in overtime play.

"Penalty strokes are a goalie's worst nightmare," says McDonald, "but my team took a lot of pressure off by [scoring] on the first three strokes." Junior defensive player Britney Carr, senior forward Leah McClure, and sophomore forward Marissa O'Neil each scored penalty strokes.

"Saturday's game showed us how important each member of the team is," said Laverty. "I was impressed by the hustle, desire, and intensity of the whole team... our win would not have been possible without the group effort that was displayed on Saturday."

Templeton agreed, "We definitely gained some real team confidence out there Saturday, so along with that and working really hard this week in practice, we should be in a good position for our two huge back to back [home] games this weekend against Amherst and Middlebury ."

The Polar Bears hold an impressive 4-1 record thus far, having beaten Wellesley, MIT, Wheaton, and now Williams, which Laverty believes "will be a critical step in our season."

Templeton added, "We can only hope to keep this momentum to propel us through the rest of the season."