Senior co-captain Sarah Eckhoff scored two goals and had one assist during the first two Husky field hockey games of the season last week.
The Northeastern News Player of the Week was modest in her assessment of the goals and said it takes the whole team to score.
“One of the things we talk about in practice is ‘we’ goals,” said Eckhoff, a midfielder. “When someone makes a great recovery after a counterattack and we pass down the field, it’s not just the one person who passes you the ball before you score, it’s everyone.”
Eckhoff scored a goal and had an assist in Northeastern’s 5-0 win over the University of New Hampshire Aug. 26. She said solid preparation, aggressive defense, good ball speed and a balance of offense and penalty corners contributed to the performance.
Eckhoff also scored Northeastern’s only goal in a Sept. 2 5-1 loss to No. 7 Penn State University. Eckhoff said she and the rest of the team felt “horrible” about the loss.
“It was not a Northeastern performance,” Eckhoff said. “That was not the game we set out to play this season and not the game we look to play. We played a solid 10 minutes at the beginning of the game. Then we suffered and couldn’t recover from that suffering.”
Eckhoff said the big problems for the Huskies were fundamentals, like lack of hustle and problems breaking the ball out of the defensive end.
“When four out of 11 people put in a solid effort, it’s tough to pull out a win against a top … team,” Eckhoff said. “That’s not to say other people didn’t play well at certain points, but it’s a 70-minute game.”
Eckhoff and the rest of the Husky field hockey team are used to winning. They’ve made the postseason the last five years in a row, and don’t take any loss lightly.
“Coming off a success like UNH and feeling good about that, [the Penn State game] was an early reality check about what it’s like to play a top … team,” Eckhoff said. “That [loss] will affect our preparation this week.”
Last season, Eckhoff served as an assistant captain and started every game for the Huskies. She also set career highs in goals with six, assists with two and total points with 14. She had her first multiple-goal game at Delaware on Oct. 2.
In her Northeastern career, Eckhoff has netted 11 goals, three assists and 25 points. She was named to the American East All-Rookie Team in 2003.
Northeastern’s next game is tonight at Boston College.
– Jewel Della Valle, News Staff
