Field Hockey Drops Tough 5-0 Decision To Mount Holyoke
SOUTH HADLEY, Mass. -– Senior forwards Jess Fajardo (Amherst, Mass./Amherst Regional) and Shara Robertson (KwaZulu Natal, South Africa/St. Mary's) scored two goals apiece, as the Mount Holyoke College field hockey team rolled to a 5-0 triumph over Babson College this afternoon at the Mount Holyoke Turf Field. With the win, the Lyons moved to 3-1 in NEWMAC play and 7-3 overall.
Led by senior Tricia Chase (Feeding Hills, Mass./Cathedral), Mount Holyoke's suffocating defense limited Babson to just five shots and five corners. Senior goalkeeper Katie Gibson (Charlotte, N.C./Charlotte Latin) needed to stop just one shot to earn her third shutout of the season and 15th of her career. She received some help from first year midfielder Kirsten Kilburn (North Branford, Conn./North Branford), who came up with a pair of defensive saves.
Mount Holyoke grabbed a 1-0 edge 11:08 into the contest, when Fajardo navigated through heavy traffic in front to score her first goal of the day. Kilburn was credited with the assist on the play.
With the outcome of the match still in question, the Lyons exploded for two goals over a span of 2:33 in the early stages of the second half to push their lead to 3-0. After Robertson scored off a rebound at the 40:23 mark, she set up first year forward Stephanie Slysz (Hatfield, Mass./Smith Academy) less than three minutes later. Both shots came from the middle of the circle.
Mount Holyoke put things out of reach with two more tallies down the stretch. The first came from Fajardo in the 62nd minute. After a wild flurry that included three shots and two saves, the ball eventually made its way to Slysz, who found Fajardo with a short pass from the right side. Robertson then used a feed from Kilburn to record her team-leading 12th goal of the year in the final seconds. Babson sophomore goalkeeper Kayla Florence (Milton, Mass./Thayer Academy) came off her line in attempt to cut off the pass, but Robertson beat her to the ball and snapped a shot into the empty cage.
The Lyons finished with overwhelming advantages in both shots (30-5) and corners (12-5).
Senior goalkeeper Jess Pashos (Winchester, Mass./Winchester) made 15 saves for the Beavers before giving way to Florence with eight minutes left.
Mount Holyoke (7-3, 3-1 NEWMAC) will return to action on Wednesday, when it visits Simmons College for a non-conference contest beginning at 6:00 p.m. Babson (7-6, 3-2 NEWMAC) is slated to visit Middlebury College tomorrow at 1:00 p.m.
NOTE: Taken from a Mount Holyoke College press release.
