Dean College Field Hockey poses for photo following their first win of the 2023 season on Wednesday night
(Photo Courtesy of Elms College Athletics)
CHICOPEE, MA – The Dean College Field Hockey team pulled out their first win of the 2023 season, and the first win in the head coach Megan Baker era with a 3-1 road win at Elms on Wednesday night. Weather conditions were perfect for the matchup, with cool temperatures and the slight chance of rain being nothing more than a scare. The Bulldogs entered after a tight 2-0 loss to New England at home Sunday, while the Blazers suffered a 9-0 setback to Union (NY) on the road that same afternoon.
Dean controlled the battle in shots 17-3, shots on goal 12-2, and corners 12-6. Elms firmly controlled saves 9-1 and fouls 56-43. The Bulldogs had struggled to put together a full 70-minute effort to this point in the season but did it this time in a big way.
The Bulldogs hit the scoresheet first at the 11:44 mark of the opening quarter as sophomore Bella Petrus would whip a low one by the Elms keeper for her first collegiate goal and a 1-0 lead. Petrus was not content to stop there though, as just 3:06 later, she buzzed a high-and-hard one to the back of the cage for the first two-goal Dean period of the season and a 2-0 advantage.
Elms, as they’ve done often when trailing early in games, struck back quickly six minutes into the second quarter. Senior Samantha Bonneau connected with the cage off a feed from her younger winger Elizabeth Franzoni, to cut the Dean lead in half, 2-1. The Bulldogs would answer back less than four minutes later when first-year Tristyn Williams potted in a feed from sophomore Sydnee Ramos for the insurance goal and a 3-1 advantage.
“It was very, very exciting to finally get that first win,” said Bulldogs head coach Megan Baker. “We’ve been working really hard on being cohesive across all lines from our defensive line to our attacking line. It was great to see us finally execute everything we’ve been working towards. We are definitely not satisfied where we are at right now,” Baker continued.
“We know our potential and where we need to grow, and I think collectively we are all very excited about where this program is headed,” Baker noted. “Taking accountability for ourselves, and for our teammates have been super impactful for our success. We are really excited to keep this momentum going forward into the rest of our season and until we are able to grow this program.”
The Bulldogs move to 1-7 on the 2023 season and 1-3 in Great Northeast Athletic Conference play. They play their next game on Saturday, September 23rd at noon at Grant Field as they will square off with Anna Maria College in another GNAC matchup.