Field Hockey falls to Owls, 3-2

The Penn field hockey team viewed yesterday's match at Temple as an opportunity to boost its image as a regional, and even national, power. Coming off an upset of No. 20 William & Mary, the Quakers had begun to position themselves as candidates for the NCAA tournament. But after yesterday's 3-2 loss to the Owls (5-8), Penn will have to again convince the pollsters that it is worthy of consideration. The Quakers (8-3) grabbed the early lead when senior Abby Herbine knocked in a rebound with 14 minutes, 19 seconds remaining in the first half. But the lead held up for only 1:28, as Temple's Claudia Ovchinnikoff scored on Penn goalkeeper Sarah Dunn to even the score at 1. "That was definitely a letdown," Penn senior forward Kara Philbin said. "In any field hockey game, the period right after a goal is a crucial time. You can't get comfortable with a lead." The score remained locked at 1 through the half. But the Owls took control of the game early in the second half. Temple struck twice in under a minute to give the Owls' a 3-1 lead. Tara Silvestre scored first at the 16:38 mark of the second half. Just 54 seconds later, Cherifa Nouri scored on a corner attempt to extend the Owls' lead to two goals. Silvestre also recorded an assist on Nouri's score. Down by two with the clock ticking away, sophomore midfielder Sue Pierce brought the Quakers back within one with 5:07 to go. Pierce's goal came on a play similar to Herbine's first-half score. Like Herbine, Pierce gained control of a rebound and put it back into the cage. But the Temple defense stepped up for the last five minutes to seal the victory. "Allowing those back-to-back goals was definitely the defining moment of the game," Philbin said. "It was a time of breakdown for our team." Despite losing on the scoreboard, the Quakers dominated the shots-on-goal category as they have all season. Penn kept pressure on Temple goalies Deb Brown and Jenni Kelley all afternoon, racking up 15 shots to the Owls' eight. "That's definitely a team strength," Philbin said. "We have a very athletic, aggressive team. We've improved our circle play. We do a good job of keeping the ball in the circle." But despite keeping pressure on opposing defenses, the Quakers have often struggled to finish the play off. "Now that we have the ball in the circle and we keep the ball in the circle, we've got to put it in the cage," Philbin said. "There's just that one more step."