Field Hockey Falls to Shorewomen
Haley Mowery recorded 11 saves in the goal for the Bullets on Saturday
Photo courtesy of Gettysburg College Athletics
By James Ficano, Contributing Writer
The Gettysburg College Field Hockey team lost 3-2 to the Washington College Shorewomen in Saturday’s game at Roy Kirby Jr. Stadium in Chestertown, MD.
A barnburner, the field hockey game went into double overtime. It was not until the 87th minute, 17 minutes past standard regulation time, when Washington College’s junior Emily Pantazes shot the ball past senior goaltender Haley Mowery that the game finally reached its conclusion. Mowery had 11 saves on her record for the day prior to this shot.
The loss is the fourth loss on the season for the Gettysburg Bullets, who now stand 1-4 on the season. It was the third overtime appearance for the Bullets.
The game kicked off with a quick tip-in goal by Washington’s first year forward Grace Steele in the third minute of the first period. Grace Steele’s second goal of the season was assisted by first year Kailyn Brandt by way of a long pass through the circle leading to a tip in.
The Bullets fired back with a goal only minutes later thanks to a blast by first year Emma Bertrando at 8:12 of the first period. It was also Bertrando’s second goal on the season. Senior Lindsay Kraus assisted the goal.
Gettysburg surged and took the lead when Bertrando once again put points on the scoreboard. Senior captain Lily Neibart’s assisted the goal with a pass from the top of the field in the 29th minute. Washington College had two more failed penalty corner attempts before the end of the first regulation period.
The Lady Bullets hit their stride in the beginning of the second regulation period, getting several good shots on goal. The Bullets rattled off five shots with the help Bertrando, first year Megan Kratz, first year Grace Torrence, and senior Philippa Lumsden.
The Bullets also defended against three shots, two of which were blocked by defenders and one saved by senior goalie Haley Mowery.
The Shorewomen went on to tie the game late into the second regulation period with a goal by first-year Kailyn Brandt. Brandt went unassisted on this shot, dribbling around Gettysburg defenders and scoring with a reverse stick shot. With the game standing 2-2 as the end of regulation neared, senior Bullet goalie Haley Mowery made a penalty stroke save in the 69th minute to push the game into overtime.
The action packed first overtime period went without a score. Several shots came from both the Bullets’ and the Shorewomen’s squads. The Bullets fired five shots with no avail, and the Shorewomen fired eight with the same result. Mowery once again showed tremendous effort with six saves in the first overtime period.
The second overtime period started with an aggressive push by the Shorewomen held off by senior Haley Mowery’s efforts. Eventually Pantazes scored off of a rebound from a save in the 87th minute to bring an end to the long game.
“Our most recent game against Washington College was a great game, that ended in double overtime,” said Head Coach Barb Jordan. “The conference is very strong with each team having a viable chance of making it to the conference tournament, so every game is extremely important.”
Although the Bullets record is currently negative they have shown through their three overtime appearances that they can battle with the tough competition and are still looking for a spot in that conference tournament.
“We were obviously disappointed with the result, but we will continue working to improve and will be ready for our next conference game.” said Coach Jordan.
The Bullets will look for another win this weekend when they face the Ursinus College Bears at 1pm Saturday, September 23 on Musselman Stadium.
