Box Score Medford, Mass. - The visiting Trinity College Bantams suffered a 2-0 setback against the Tufts University Jumbos in the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) Field Hockey Quarterfinals this afternoon at Bello Field. Tufts, seeded No. 3 in the tournament and ranked No. 15 nationally, scored twice in the first half to improve to 11-5 and will face the No. 2-seeded Middlebury College Panthers at Bowdoin in the NESCAC Semifinals next Saturday. Trinity closes the year with an 8-8 mark.
Trinity applied the offensive pressure early, but Jumbo goalie Emily Polinski made saves against junior
Mia Olsen (Granby, Conn.) and
Kelcie Finn (Weymouth, Mass.) on a penalty corner seven minutes into the game, and senior Alexandra Jamison added a defensive save against Olsen's rebound bid. Trinity senior tri-captain goalkeeper
Sophie Fitzpatrick (Duxbury, Mass.) made three stops in 14 seconds as the Jumbos picked up their offensive intensity, and Tufts scored the game's first goal just under 15 minutes into the contest. Senior tri-captain Maggie Chapman inserted the ball to junior Elle Chrupcala who lifted the ball towards the net. Junior tri-captain Dominique Zarrella deflected the ball into the top right corner for her tenth of the season.
The Jumbos made it 2-0 off a penalty stroke with just over four minutes remaining in the first half. Jumbo freshman Hanaa Malik smacked a rebound toward the left corner of the goal, and Trinity first-year back Molly Reiily (Andover, Mass.) attempted a defensive save but the ball hti her body instead of her stick. Senior Dakota Sikes-Keilp lifted the stroke into the top right corner for the game's final tally.
In the second half, Zarella hit a post 16:33 shortly after the break on a breakaway, and Trinity came up short on three consecutive penalty corners inside the 10-minute mark. Polinski saved shots by Trinity senior forward
Olivia Tapsall (Greenwich, Conn.) and Bantam sophomore forward
Brenna Hobin (Madison, Conn.) was wide on one shot and stopped on a defensive save by Celia Lewis on another. The Jumbos finished with the advantage in shots, 18-12, and penalty corners, 10-8. Fitzpatrick made 11 saves for the Bantams, while Polinski made six saves in her fourth shutout of the year.
