Field Hockey Drops Conference Tilt to Wheelock

Chris Kendrick (@CKendrick86)

CHICOPEE, Mass. – The Elms College field hockey squad was unable to overcome a pair of second half goals from visiting Wheelock College in a 3-1 conference loss at Leary Field Saturday afternoon. The Blazers move to 1-11 on the season, and 1-2 in NECC play, while Wheelock sits at 6-5, and remains unbeaten in league play at 4-0.

In the fifth minute of play, Wheelock cracked the scoreboard as junior Emma Panto (Somers, Conn.) gathered a loose ball in front of the Elms net and knocked a shot past Blazers senior goalie Samantha Alvino (Holtsville, N.Y.) to give the Wildcats an early 1-0 lead.

The Blazers responded at the 18:15 mark of the first half as junior Marie Lafortune (Southwick, Mass.) worked a give-and-go with freshman Marissa Mizzone (Orange, Conn.) with Lafortune finishing with a blast past Wheelock freshman keeper Cassidy Smith (South Berwick, Maine) to knot the game at 1-1. The score remained at 1-1 heading into the intermission.

The Wildcats took control in the 48^th minute when sophomore Katie Frade (Dartmouth, Mass.) found a loose ball near the far post and placed a shot into the back of the net, giving the Wildcats a 2-1 edge. Less than three minutes later, Panto played a shot through the front of the Elms goal, where freshman Anissa Girard (Claremont, N.H.) tucked the ball past Alvino, securing the 3-1 win for Wheelock.

The Wildcats outshot the Blazers, 29-5, during the contest. Alvino registered 16 saves for Elms, while Smith made four saves for Wheelock.

The Blazers will look to return to the win column against Bay Path University in a home conference match Wednesday night at 7:00 p.m. Wheelock hosts Becker College Wednesday afternoon at 4:00 p.m.

ELMS FIELD HOCKEY