Even the crisp Maine air could not help the Bates Bobcats temper the dynamic Bowdoin Field Hockey Team last Wednesday night as the Polar Bears cruised to a 6-0 victory.
Continuing with their dominating trend, the Polar Bears held a 32-3 shot advantage and controlled the ball for most of the 70-minute contest.
Netting the first goal for Bowdoin was forward Lindsay McNamara '09. Charging up the right side of the field, McNamara followed the rocket she sent in on Bobcat goalkeeper Katie McEnroe and knocked the rebound home at 8:34 in the first half.
The unsung hero of the second Polar Bears goal was right-winger Madeleine McQueeney '09.
After making a solid stop off a Bates free hit, McQueeney maneuvered the ball into the striking semi-circle, creating the opportunity for McNamara to blast her second tally of the night into the back of the cage.
A penalty corner conversion by Leah Ferenc '09 deflated any lingering Bobcat confidence.
Ingrid Oelschlager '11 pushed the ball out to Ferenc for a quick shot, and McEnroe could only watch as the third Bowdoin goal sailed past her left knee at 27:55.
Before the night was over, McNamara would bag another goal, Oelschlager would put away a rebound off a shot from Jessie Small '11 as well as another goal, and first year Ella Curren would land her name on the score sheet for the first time in her college career by assisting the final Polar Bear goal of the evening.
"We had a lot of intensity throughout the game which really showed up in our one-on-one battles and passing connections. I think that's why we were successful," said sweeper Ferenc.
The fourth-straight shutout win for the field hockey team caused high nerves for the Polar Bear faithful when Bowdoin almost tied with the unranked Wesleyan University Cardinals last Saturday in Middletown, Connecticut.
With each second that ticked off the game clock, the anxiety grew for the Bowdoin players, coaches, and fans until McNamara provided a reprieve by scoring in the final 13 seconds of the game off a pass from midfielder Kate Gormley '09 to give the Bears a 1-0 win.
"Obviously Wesleyan played very well defensively, but we need to work on our finishing and executing our penalty corners," said Coach Nicky Pearson after the excitement of the game had settled.
Despite holding the clear advantage in shots on goal (36-0) and penalty corner opportunities (25-0), the Polar Bears were held to their lowest goal total of the 2008 season.
The thorn in Bowdoin's side all night was the spectacular individual efforts from Wesleyan netminder Breen McDonald '10, who made a career high 18 saves, and midfielder Alexa David '10 who had three defensive saves in the game.
"The 'pack-it-in' style of defense that Wesleyan used made it very challenging for our team to find the space we needed when we had the ball inside the circle," said forward Shavonne Lord '10.
The field hockey team faces its next NESCAC test on Saturday when they head to Williamstown, Mass., to take on the purple and gold Ephs of Williams, followed by a stop in Portland to battle the University of Southern Maine Huskies on Tuesday.