The women’s hockey team won its last three games, bringing its record to 3-2. They are 0-2-0 in the NESCAC, with two losses to Colby.
On Tuesday, the Polar Bears bested New England College with a 5-0 victory. After letting up two early scores, the Polar Bears dominated the remainder of the game, outshooting the Pilgrims 59-16. Rachel Kennedy ’16, Maddy Hall ’17, Colleen Finnerty ’15, captain Madeline Lane ’14 and Schyler Nardelli ’15 each had one goal. First year Lan Crofton saved 14 shots in the win.
“[Our comeback] showed resiliency and the character of the program,” said Head Coach Marissa O’Neil. “Our returners were able to step up and fill the shoes of the graduating class, which helped us get the last three wins.”
The Polar Bears defeated Holy Cross and UMass-Boston over Thanksgiving Break, despite being outshot 29-13 by Holy Cross. On November 30, Lane scored both goals in the 2-1 victory over Holy Cross. Goalie Beth Findley ’16 made 28 stops in the net.
Bowdoin beat UMass-Boston on November 26 with a score of 2-1. Crofton made 26 stops in her first appearance on the ice. Ariana Bourque ’16 scored twice in the third period, posting the game-winning goal with 11 seconds left in the game. Bourque was also named the NESCAC women’s hockey Player of the Week.
The previous weekend had not been as fruitful for the Bears. The team opened their season with two losses to Colby. On Saturday November 23, the Polar Bears fell to the Mules 4-3. Colby answered an early first period goal by Jessica Bowen ’17 and took a 3-1 lead early in the second period. Bourque capitalized on a Colby penalty and cut the lead to one in the second period. In the sixth minute, Colby went up 4-2. Captain Chelsea MacNeil ’15 scored in the third period to spark a late game comeback, but the Mules held on to the win.
Bowdoin lost in their home opener in overtime, 3-2 against Colby. Colby took a 2-0 lead in the second period, but on a power play two minutes into the third quarter, MacNeil cut the Mules’ lead in half. The Polar Bears tied the game up when Nardelli scored with an assist by first year Aliya Feroe. Colby capitalized on a Bowdoin turnover and scored with 20 seconds left in overtime. Findley made 17 saves and Bowdoin outshot Colby 48-20.
“Our kids fought for 60 minutes straight, but couldn’t pull it out,” said O’Neil.
The women’s team was playing with a short bench against Colby, as they were waiting for three field hockey players—Kennedy, Finnerty and first year Kimmy Ganong—to return from their NCAA Field Hockey Championship victory.
“All our three field hockey kids are impact players and will get ample minutes,” said O’Neil. “Before they returned, our top players were logging over 35 minutes per game. That’s insane.”
The Polar Bears will travel to Norwich University tomorrow to play at 7 p.m.