SOUTH HADLEY, Mass. (Oct. 16, 2010) – Junior forward Shara Robertson tapped in a pass from first year forward Stephanie Slysz in the waning minutes of overtime, lifting the Mount Holyoke College field hockey team to a dramatic 3-2 triumph over MIT this afternoon at the Mount Holyoke Turf Field.
With the win, the Lyons put an end to MIT's nine match winning streak. The Engineers entered the contest sitting atop the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) standings with a perfect 5-0 mark. They had secured 12 straight victories over league foes, dating back to the middle of the 2009 campaign.
MIT jumped out to a 1-0 advantage just over six minutes into the match, when junior forward Kameron Klauber took two steps into the circle and fired a shot past junior goalkeeper Katie Gibson from the right side. It was her team leading 18th tally of the year.
Mount Holyoke responded with the equalizer at the 25:04 mark, when junior defender Tricia Chase registered her third goal of the fall. Classmate Taylor Hedges got the play started with a long cross from the right side. Sophomore forward Angelica Pascual redirected the pass to Chase, who collected the ball in the middle of the circle and beat senior Keri Dixon.
With momentum on their side, the Lyons grabbed their first lead of the day on a goal by Slysz in the 57th minute. The play began with a pass from the midfield that made its way into the circle. Dixon came off her line uncontested, but her clear attempt was intercepted by Slysz, who marched in alone and knocked in her sixth goal of the season.
Refusing to go away, MIT took advantage of a penalty corner opportunity to knot things up at two in the final minutes of regulation. Sophomore midfielder Molly McShane finished off the play after several short passes in the circle. Her third tally of the season sent the contest to overtime. Klauber was credited with the assist.
Both sides went scoreless in overtime until the 99th minute, when Slysz gained control of the ball in the midfield, dribbled past several MIT defenders and slid a pass around Dixon toward the cage. The feed made its way to a streaking Robertson, who calmly redirected it over the line from the left side. It was her third winner of the season and the 10th of her outstanding career. Robertson's 11 goals this year are good for tops on the team.
The Engineers fell despite edges in both shots (28-16) and penalty corners (11-9).
Gibson was once again outstanding for the Lyons. The junior came up with a season best 15 saves, including five in overtime. At the other end, Dixon turned away five shots for the Engineers.
Both squads will return to action on Tuesday. Mount Holyoke (7-5, 2-3 NEWMAC) will round out its three match homestand against WPI at 7:00 p.m., while MIT (13-2, 5-1 NEWMAC) will host Wellesley College at 6:00 p.m.
