Field Hockey Registers Overtime Victory at Mount Ida

Chris Kendrick (@CKendrick86)

NEWTON, Mass. – The Elms College field hockey squad defeated host Mount Ida, 3-2, in overtime in a non-conference match at Alumni Field Friday night.

After a scoreless first half of play, the Mustangs cracked the scoreboard in the 47^th minute as freshman Lexi Minicucci scored off a pass from Ashley Tice, to stake Mount Ida to a 1-0 lead.

The Blazers didn't let the Mustangs control the scoreboard for long as senior forward Kayla Narey (South Hadley, Mass.) redirected a shot from fellow senior forward Emma Morgan (South Kingstown, R.I.) past Mount Ida goalkeeper Breanna Santos, knotting the contest at 1-1.

Déjà vu struck again for the Mustangs as the Blazers pulled ahead in the 45^th minute when senior midfielder Imogen Leonard (Sharon, Mass.) fired a shot off a Mustangs defender and into the net, giving the Blazers a 2-1 advantage. With less than seven minutes remaining, Mount Ida pulled even on a tally from Tice to send the game into overtime.

Less than three minutes into the extra frame, Elms put the game away as junior forward Kristina Kopyscinski (Agawam, Mass.) broke through the middle of the field on a breakaway and fired a shot past Santos, to send the Blazers to a 3-2 victory Friday night.

The Mustangs edged the Blazers in shots, 11-10, during the contest, while Elms controlled the penalty corners, 18-5. Elms junior goalkeeper Samantha Alvino (Holtsville, N.Y.) stopped a game-high seven shots in the win, while Santos made three saves for Mount Ida.

With the win, the Blazers improve to 2-9 on the season, while Mount Ida dropped to 3-6 overall. The Blazers will return to the field in a home contest against Wheaton (Mass.) on Thursday night. Face off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.

ELMS FIELD HOCKEY