CAMBRIDGE, Mass. - Three goals during a 10-minute span in the second half helped MIT come from behind to defeat Mount Holyoke College, 4-2, in NEWMAC field hockey action on Saturday. A trio of Engineers registered one goal and one assist, while Sophie Perekslis accounted for both of the Lyons' tallies.
Following MIT's (7-1; 1-1 NEWMAC) second penalty corner of the game, sophomore Rayna Higuchi (Solana Beach, Calif.) found senior Katie Notarangelo (Foxboro, Mass.) whose shot from the middle of the arc deflected off a defender's stick into the net after six minutes elapsed.
Mount Holyoke (5-3; 1-1 NEWMAC) generated the equalizer almost eight minutes later when Kristina Ramsden (Florence, Mass.) snuck the ball through a scrum from the far post to Perekslis (Millerton, N.Y.) at the near post. After some back-and-forth play that saw both goalies come up with a save, the Lyons claimed a 2-1 lead in the 30th minute. A shot by Kaitlin Braz (Tolland, Conn.) grazed the post but Perekslis corralled the rebound and slipped the ball past freshman goalie Grace Moore (Boston, Mass.).
The visitors controlled the action early in the second half as they produced three penalty corners and two shots on goal. MIT slowly generated some momentum on the offensive end, resulting in four penalty corners, but could not end the scoring drought.
The Engineers eventually tied the game in the 47th minute courtesy of junior Bailey Tregoning's (Frederick, Md.) breakaway run along the far side. She fed the ball to Higuchi whose deflection went to the top of the net. Two minutes later the Cardinal and Gray took a 3-2 edge on senior Emily Penn's (Columbia, Md.) penalty stroke.
MIT then recorded an insurance goal with 14:32 left to play. Notarangelo sent a strike from just beyond the arc and at the last moment the ball glanced off Tregoning's stick past Morgan Turner (Chester, N.J.).
A few minutes later Perekslis almost cut Mount Holyoke's deficit in half but Moore came up with a save. Braz also threatened to narrow the gap with a long run towards the arc, however, the Engineers' backline swarmed around her to thwart the scoring attempt.
The Engineers finished with advantages in shots (11-10) and penalty corners (10-4). Moore made five saves for the hosts while Turner turned away two shots. Kathryn Rawson (Old Town, Maine) contributed a pair of defensive saves for Mount Holyoke.
MIT continues its home stand on Tuesday, Sept. 26 when it takes on nationally-ranked No. 9 Amherst College at 6:00 p.m. Mount Holyoke, meanwhile, returns to action on Saturday, Sept. 30 when it hosts No. 2 Babson College for a NEWMAC game slated to start at 2:00 p.m.
Game recap courtesy of Mindy Brauer, Assistant Director of MIT DAPER Communications, Promotions and Marketing.
