NEW LONDON, Conn. – The Connecticut College field hockey team never trailed in a 3-1 victory over Worcester Polytechnic Institute on a cold and windy Tuesday night at Silfen Field.
The Camels took a 2-0 lead in the final quarter, only to see the Engineers cut the deficit in half in the opening minute of the stanza.
Isabella Carnall (Malvern, Pa.) protected the margin with three saves the rest of the way, and Conn added an empty-net insurance goal with 1:30 to play.
Megan Pons (Charlotte, N.C.) and
Serena Moore (Houston, Texas) each netted their first goals of the season, and
Bridget McGann (West Hartford, Conn.) pocketed her team-leading eighth of the year. Carnall finished with eight saves and picked up her fifth victory of the season.
The Camels owned the first 10 minutes of the contest, locking the ball in their offensive end and dominating possession. Conn got on the scoreboard with 7:38 left in the quarter when Pons beat the goalie stick side off a feed from
Elizabeth Bonner (Westfield, N.J.).
The hosts carried the 1-0 advantage into the halftime intermission and protected it throughout the third period. Carnall made a pair of saves on a crucial sequence, the last of which was a sprawling stop on the doorstep to deny Emma Barton.
The Camels added their second goal off a penalty corner in the final minute of the third. Bonner put a shot on goal that was stopped by goalie Myles Lakin, but the ensuing rebound ended up at the right post and finished off by Moore.
Leah Uglevich got the Engineers on the board just 28 seconds into the fourth quarter, sweeping home a shot at the left post off a pass from Abbey Powers to make it a 2-1 game. However, that was the only shot that got past Carnall, who supplied her final three saves of the night to keep the lead intact.
The Engineers pulled their goalie with 4:35 to go in favor of an extra attacker, and the Camels eventually made them pay. Conn's 10th penalty corner of the night yielded a shot by
Maddie Mason (Brentwood, N.H.) that was blocked by a defender, but McGann collected the rebound on the right side and lifted a shot past a pair of defenders for the tally.
Lakin finished with eight saves for WPI, which dropped to 9-4 overall on the season.
Conn (5-6 overall) will next play at No. 6 Bates College on Saturday, October 18 at 11:00 a.m.
