By Tyler Blint-Welsh, news correspondent
With wins over Hofstra University and no. 8 Boston College (BC) under its belt, the Northeastern field hockey team continued its run of utter dominance this week, stretching its longest winning streak since 2005 to 10 games.
As in many other games, the Huskies found themselves in a hole early, allowing a goal at the 5:15 mark of the first half against Hofstra. But like they have all season, Northeastern was able to respond effectively, scoring the equalizer at the 6:49 mark. Assisted by sophomores Natalie Stewart, midfielder, and Emma Lamison, forward, redshirt junior back Kate Carlson scored off a corner, which has been a strong point for the Huskies throughout their win streak.
The goal, Carlson’s third of the season, marked a new career high. Along with Carlson, Stewart and Lamison set new career records for goals and assists. Junior forward Vanessa Pryor set her career high for assists, and redshirt senior forward Kelly Dunn set a new career high for goals in a season.
Later in the half at the 30:07 mark, Lamison scored her fifth goal of the season to put the Huskies up 2-1. After a defensive mishap allowed Hofstra to tie the game at 2, Pryor dished out her sixth assist of the season to Stewart, who scored with less than a minute left in the first half.
Minutes into the second half, Dunn joined in on the goal scoring frenzy, scoring her sixth goal of the season on an unassisted shot, giving the Huskies a 4-2 lead. After Hofstra scored a goal at the 56:50 mark, the Husky defense was able to clamp down and hold on for the win.
Though the Huskies did come out on top, Head Coach Cheryl Murtagh said she was not satisfied with the defensive effort.
“Although Hofstra was a good offensive team, unfortunately our defense let down a little bit, and it was not the kind of defense this team has been playing [throughout the season],” she said.
On Sunday, the Huskies put forth a strong effort against BC to secure another win. In what was a back-and-forth game throughout, the Eagles were able to take a 2-1 lead in the second half. Sensing that her team needed a spark, Murtagh pulled sophomore keeper Becky Garner from the net in order to put in an extra attacker on the field. The strategy would leave the net unguarded but would provide an offensive advantage for the Huskies.
The gamble paid off, and sophomore midfielder Natalie Stewart was able to score with 2:41 left in regulation. In the second overtime period, Emma Lamison scored the game-winning goal with 9:21 left, completing the upset of the no. 8 team in the nation. Lamison was later named Colonial Athletic Association Player of the Week.
“I was proud of them, they handled it really well. If you go by rankings, you wouldn’t have noticed it was the no. 8 team versus the no. 17 team,” Murtagh said. “I was proud of the way they played tough for all those minutes.”
Murtagh stressed that the Huskies must continue to improve for their next game against Drexel University on Oct. 12.
“We need to keep worrying about the next game, and focusing on what we have to do in order to get past our next opponent,” she said.
With the recent wins, the team is now ranked 10th in the nation.
Photo by Zack Williamson, Northeastern Athletics
