Field Hockey can't buy a break

This season was supposed to be a fresh start for the young Penn field hockey team, a year that rendered the bad luck of the 1999 Quakers season a mere memory. Unfortunately for the Red and Blue, the bad breaks just seem to keep on coming. With a 2-1 double overtime loss to West Chester (4-3) last night, the Quakers fell to 1-5 on the season. A gut-wrenching four of those five losses have come in sudden death overtime. "We played really hard all night," Penn sophomore Ali Corsi said. "It's really frustrating because we work so hard and it just never seems to go our way." The Golden Rams charged into the first half, tallying their first goal less than four minutes into the game, with Jennifer Okupniarek finding the back of the net. That early spurt looked as if it might have provided the wake-up call the Quakers needed to take control of the game. "We didn't come out as strong as we wanted to and as hard as we should have," Penn senior co-captain Amna Nawaz said. "Then with them scoring, we got ourselves back into the game and played our game again, which is when we play best." The Quakers went into the second half visibly more determined to score, earning four penalty corners in only the first six minutes of play. "We tend to come out of halftimes strongly. The downtime helps us to get our composure back, and that time spent talking together is good for us," Nawaz said. Soon after the fourth corner, junior Nikki Battiste put back sophomore Kylee Jakobowski's hard shot from the right side of the circle, tying the game at one. The game grew increasingly physical, and players on both teams are likely to feel the bumps and bruises of last night's contest for a while. "It's all a part of the game," Nawaz said. Neither the Quakers nor the Rams were able to score for the rest of regulation, aided by the strong play of the goalkeepers at both ends of the field. Penn freshman goalkeeper Carrie Wilhelm notched six saves, including a game-saving play as the second half drew to a close during a Rams' penalty corner. In both overtimes, Wilhelm made several critical saves on breakaways that kept the Quakers alive. "I think it had a lot to do with the goalies," Corsi said. "West Chester's played an amazing game. She made a lot of crucial saves for them. Our goalie played great; she kept us in the game. We should be thankful she played so well." Penn had multiple opportunities to score in the waning minutes. The Quakers failed to convert several penalty corners and cross-ball opportunities. "I felt like every time we had a corner, I thought that that would be it, but we just didn't follow through. We didn't execute corners as well as we should have. Maybe we got nervous," Corsi said. Lindsay Gordon scored the gamewinner for the Rams, with 4:30 left to go in double overtime, leaving the Quakers to deal with their second consecutive loss and another overtime heartbreak. "On the one hand, it feels like we should have an advantage because of all of the overtimes," Nawaz said. "It pulls everyone together. There's this common frustration that we all want to overcome." Converting scoring opportunities seems to be the Quakers' main focus now. "We had so many opportunities and didn't convert. We're not finishing, putting it in when we need to," Nawaz said. With their growing game experience, however, the Quakers are quickly learning what they must do to earn a victory. "We had a consistent effort and good passing the whole game," Penn junior co-captain Monique Horshaw said. "It was a well-played game, and it's a shame we had to lose. We could have capitalized on more opportunities." Despite the heartbreaking loss, the Red and Blue are ready to move on and focus on winning their first Ivy League game Saturday, at Dartmouth. "Our captains motivate us and tell us that we need to play every game like it's a new season," Corsi said. If anyone is ready for a fresh start, this team certainly is.

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