F. Hockey avoids OT deja vu

Despite losing the lead in the second half, the Quakers' Erica Childs knocked home the winning goal in overtime. The Penn field hockey team finally found success in overtime, as senior Erica Childs' goal lifted the Quakers in sudden death over Cornell Friday afternoon in Ithaca, N.Y., by a score of 4-3. The Red and Blue came out victorious in their second overtime of the season, after having lost to Dartmouth September 21, and the team won its first Ivy League game, improving to 1-1 within the conference. Cornell got on the board early, with senior Faith Harrison scoring to put the Big Red up 1-0. The Quakers came right back, however, and sophomore midfielder Maureen Flynn tied the game at one off of a penalty corner with 16 minutes remaining in the half. Undaunted, Harrison put another shot past Penn junior goaltender Sarah Dunn, putting Cornell (3-3, 1-2) back on top, 2-1. "It was very back and forth. No one really dominated an end for a period of time," Penn coach Val Cloud said. "It was pretty much up and down." This was illustrated by the shot count, which showed both teams evenly matched, with Penn just edging Cornell, 17-15. Play continued similarly, as Penn senior midfielder Tara Childs capped the scoring flurry with her team-leading sixth goal of the season with just over seven minutes to play in the first half. Childs' goal knotted the score at two, but Flynn scored again four minutes later to leave the Quakers up 3-2 at halftime. Flynn has been hot recently. She has scored three goals in her last two games, since changing her position to right midfield. "I feel more comfortable there, as far as going forward and coming through, so it has helped me out individually," Flynn said. "I think it's just a matter of timing, but the position change helped a lot." Both teams came out of halftime ready to play with the same intensity they had demonstrated throughout the first half. The action took place all over the field, however the Quakers (4-1, 1-1) went scoreless. As the clock ran down, the attacking became more aggressive. With just under two minutes remaining, Cornell senior midfielder Kari Hills knocked in a shot to tie the game at three. As the whistle blew at the end of regulation, Dartmouth flashbacks began to rise the Penn bench. "It was the same kind of up and down game, but we just knew we had to prove ourselves," Flynn said. "We weren't going to lose another Ivy League game in overtime." Flynn was proven right. With just over six minutes remaining in the extra period, senior co-captain Emily Hansel brought the ball up from midfield and sent a pass across the circle to fellow senior Erica Childs. With the defense out of position, Childs put the ball in the goal to give the Quakers a 4-3 victory. It was Hansel's second assist of the contest. "I was just happy the game was over, and that we came out with the victory," Childs said. "It was nice to win in overtime."