September 19, 2013
For some teams, a 22-game losing streak can have a demoralizing effect on athletes. But for the Hamilton women’s field hockey team, this statistic made that first win feel that much sweeter. Facing the Bobcats, who went 4-10 last year, the Continentals came away with their first win since October 2011 in a 1-0 victory over Bates last Saturday. The Conts have had a great record against the Bobcats, winning two of their last three games against them.
While the Bates game was decided by a single goal with 9:42 left in the second half, the Continentals dominated throughout the contest. They enjoyed a 29-7 shot advantage, along with 18 penalty corners to Bates’ four. Keeping the pressure on throughout the game eventually led to the breakthrough goal from Eva Rosencrans ’17.
“It was such an exciting moment,” Rosencrans recalled. “Winning this game was such a huge moment, and I am so happy we had the chance to prove ourselves and set the tone for the rest of the season.”
Goalie Victoria Trentini ’15 also played a major role in the win, executing her second career shutout and bringing her save percentage for the season up to an impressive 0.828. Looking back, she said “there were definitely a mix of emotions going on throughout the game. After we scored, those last nine minutes felt like an hour. But as a defensive unit we were not going to let them score… the defense was able to stop whatever Bates the ball up to the forwards.”
This has so far been the season of the first-years for the field hockey team, with Rosencrans scoring the only goal in this contest as well as one against SUNY Oneonta in the opener. Fellow first-year Emma Anderson added another goal in that game, along with Sam Sherman ’15. Coach Gillian McDonald has nothing but good words about the class of 2017, saying, “They are playing with a lot of confidence right now that you would never even know they were first-years.”
As the Continentals continue their season, they will no doubt use this win as a springboard to future successes. Coach McDonald said, “The Bates win gave us a ton of confidence and really got the monkey off our back.” Similarly, Rosencrans believes that, “Coming off this win, we will definitely be going into [the game against Conn. College] with a little more confidence. We now know that we have what it takes.”
This Saturday, the Conts will head down to New London, CT to face the Camels of Connecticut College. Taking each game one at a time and hoping that their win at home will translate into future wins both at home and on the road, McDonald added, “Our goal is to be better today than we were yesterday. We are looking forward to building off the confidence that our win against Bates gave us.” Trentini added, “I was so proud of how we played on Saturday as a team. It was more than just a victory–we executed everything that we practiced and I hope that we can continue that work ethic throughout the season.” If the Continentals continue to capitalize on scoring opportunities and to translate what they work on in practices into their games, there is no telling how far they will go this season.
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