SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (Oct. 31, 2011) – UPDATE: The Mount Holyoke field hockey team will have to wait another day to finish its match at Springfield College. The Lyons enjoyed a 1-0 advantage with 12:43 remaining in regulation before heavy snow made the field unplayable on Saturday. Play will resume at Stagg Field on Tuesday at 5:30 p.m.
Both teams are still battling for position in the NEWMAC standings. With a win, Mount Holyoke would secure a first round bye and a share of the regular season championship. A loss would put the Lyons in a three-way tie for second place with Springfield and Wellesley College. In that scenario, they would enter the tournament as the fourth seed and host a Quarterfinal Round match on Tuesday.
Mount Holyoke (11-4, 5-2 NEWMAC) took advantage of a penalty corner opportunity to score the lone goal at the 11:17 mark. Senior forward Shara Robertson got the play started with an injection to first year midfielder Kirsten Kilburn at the top of the circle. Kilburn then zipped a pass to fellow senior Jess Fajardo, who scored for the 13th time this year.
Springfield (4-12, 4-3 NEWMAC) nearly knotted things up later in the half, but senior goalkeeper Katie Gibson turned away a backhand attempt by sophomore forward Kelly Gallo. The ball ricocheted to senior forward Lynne Donoghue, who proceeded to snap a shot just wide of the cage.
